Grim Reaper Chronicles: Danny Phantom
by DB-KT
Summary: Things were starting to go back to normal for Danny after the Disasteriod; but after witnessing a tragic car accident, Danny was foolish enough to take ownership of a scythe called the Grimm-a special weapon that only the Grim Reaper can use. Now, Danny is stuck in a world full of souls and demons, performing the tasks of a Grim Repaer in hopes of returning back home; to his life.
1. Before you Read the Story

**This is a warning from the author:**

**This story will contain lots and lots of death. So, if you feel very uncomfortable or disgusted, please refrain from reading this story.**

**Also, as you can see by the rated M, there will be some inappropriate scenes/langauge/anything else that the majority of the public has deemed: indecent, immoral, morbid, disgusting, etc. etc. etc.**

**Throughout the story, there will be references to tragic events such as: Titanic, the Holocaust, 9/11, recent mass killings, wars, genocide, etc. etc. etc. So if you are sensitive to this stuff, please do not read this story. **

**Also, please do not tell me how morbid I am being for pairing a children's TV show to these dark things. I am already aware of this.**

**One last thing; please do not question my mental state of mind. ^^ Lol**

**Okay, now for those of you are gonna read this regardless of the message above... You're all awesome. :D And it's not as bad as I made it sound like. I just wanted people to make sure what they're getting into.**

**Alrighty then, I'm done with my warning.**

**YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED.**

**Enjoy the story! XD**


	2. A Prodgue to the End

It's just another death. Another ending to a person's life. A man thought to himself as he stood over a dead body. He paused, reconsidering his words.

But then again, for some, it is the beginning of a new way of life. One full of hollowness. And regret. And oh, so lonely.

It's easy for this man to know the pain of not moving onward, even though he helps everyone else move on. He chose to stay. He chose this afterlife. Oh yes, he too could've moved on to a better place, or worse. But he couldn't. He couldn't even dare to move on.

Not without his wife.

But even if his wife dies soon-and his child-he wouldn't move on. It's something about what he does for living-well, more like an afterlife hobby-that makes him _want_ to stay. Hell, he's dead, yet he feels so alive when he does this kind of work.

Like he was _born_ to do this.

He shook his head and redirect his focus onto the dead body before him. He had to wait a couple more minutes than he had antipacipated for the man's one last breathe, one last shudder before death really choked him, before the man in the black robe could help move the soul onward.

The man standing bent over the dead body. The man's jet-black robe fluttered as he reached down. He grabbed the dead body and pulled.

Instead of the body moving, another one came out. The body was the same as the one on the ground, but it was different. The man was no longer covered in blood, but was bathed in a golden light. He was see-through, like a ghost. And his weight? He was lighter than the air. And all in the matter of seconds, the ghostly man disappeared from the other's hands.

Another one down. The man in the black robes thought to himself as he bent down once more. This time, it was to pick up something that was precious to him. A blue ribbon slithered slightly at the end of a wooden staff of the scythe that the man has raised. Wind blew above the treetops, but it did nothing to the man-nor the ribbon. He looked up at the cloudy, sighing.

"An enterity to go..." The man whispered ever so softly.

And with that, he disappeared to another death. Another soul to be released.

For that is the job of the Master of Souls...

The Grim Reaper.


	3. A Dream with a Side of Paranoia

Am I still dreaming? Danny thought to himself as he blindingly look around his surroundings. As if there was any surroundings, for everything is dark and Danny is floating in air. He turned this way and that, trying to make his eyes pierce the darkness.

"Where am I?" Danny asks aloud, hoping for someone to answer.

No one answered back.

But a sudden dot appeared somewhat far away from Danny. Danny immediately floated towards the dim light, still wondering what is going on. As he approached the light, the object casting the light was becoming clearer. Danny stopped a few feet away from a scythe.

The scythe looked old, a little rusted on the worn blade. The wooden staff was also worn and began to rot away at some spots. An eerie aura pulsed from the scythe, causing goose-bumps to raise on Danny's arms and neck. But the feeling didn't dim Danny's curiousity. Instead, it grew.

I wonder why it's here. He thought to himself as he stared at the old scythe. He looked around, as if the scythe's owner was nearby. But again, all he saw was darkness. He focused back on the scythe, but flinched when he realized that the scythe changed shape.

The old, rusted scythe was replaced by a new, sleeker one. The no longer rusted dull blade became a deadly sharp black and white blade with a thin lime green stripe going from one end to another. In the middle of the blade was a great big green jewel that attached itself from the blade to the now slate metal staff.

Danny admired the scythe's new look. He liked it so much that his curiousity got the better of him and he reached out for the scythe.

"Danny?" Called a voice from the darkness. "Danny?"

Danny shrugged off the voice, his attention only on the scythe.

His hand was only an inch away when he felt icy cold water drench him.

"Daaah?!" Danny shouted as he leaped from where the water soaked through the bed.

"Good morning, Little Bro." Jazz said smirkingly as she lowered the empty bucket.

"Jazz." Danny said full of spite as he ditched his bed. "What did you do that for? I was sleeping!" He yelled at his older sister, annoyed that she woke him before he could touch the scythe. Jazz frowned.

"Do you know what time it is?" Jazz asked, her arms crossed over her chest.

"No, I don't. Why?"

"It's almost nine."

"Yeah. So?"

"So..."

Danny was about to yell at his sister, when he remembered what he had promised to do...

"Oh no! Tucker! Sam!"

"That's right." Jazz said with a smile. "You're late."

"Dully noted." Danny said as he quickly grabbed his clothes and rushed to the bathroom. Jazz left her brother and returned to the basement, where her parents were.

Danny locked the door and changed his clothes very quickly. His mind kept on wondering about his dream and the scythe, causing him slow down. Danny shook his head. Don't worry about it. It was just a dream. He told himself as he pulled his shirt over him.

Jazz took the last step into the basement when her mother's voice greeted her.

"Is Danny up yet?" Maddie asked Jazz as Jazz placed the bucket away.

"Now he is." Jazz replied. "Are you guys still working on the house's Ghost Threat System?"

"Yup. We're trying rewrite the program so that it won't mistake Danny as a threat." Maddie told her daughter as Jack punched in words.

"That's great! Then Danny will have nothing to worry about."

"That's right, honey." Maddie nodded to Jazz, pleased.

"Okay, Maddie." Jack called out to his wife. "It's all ready to go."

"Alright Jack, hit the switch."

"On it." Jack said as he flipped the switch to 'on'.

Danny was speeding through brushing his teeth when flashing red lights and the sirens blared.

"What the Heck?" Danny said with a foaming mouth. "Is the house Ghost Threat System malufunctioning?" A femine robot's voice boomed through the speakers.

"Ghost Detected." It said monotone. "Activate Ghost Shield. Also Activate Ghost Weapons."

"Ghost detected?!" Danny shouted, spitting the foam out. "I gotta-" Danny paused when he heard the sound of a ghost hunting gun warming up. He turned towards the sink, where a snake-like gun sprung from the drain and aimed at him. It fired a green plasma at Danny, who jumped high enough to avoid the shot, but lost his toothbrush in the process. He landed on the tile floor and shot an ice beam at the gun, which instantly froze. Danny strolled towards it and broke it easily.

"Okay, time to see what's going on in the basement..." Danny said to himself as he was going ghost. He heard the sound of water swishing. He quickly turned towards the sound. The same type of gun that was in the sink is now towering over the toilet bowl, aiming at Danny. Danny pointed at the toilet bowl with one hand and covered his mouth with the other. "That is so wrong." He said as the gun prepared to fire.

In basement, choas erupt.

"Jack! You said the system was ready!" Maddie yelled at her husband as she flipped the switch to 'off'. But to her dismay, the sirens continued to blare off.

"It was ready!" Jack shouted to his wife over the siren. He began to randomly push buttons on the control panel.

"Did you program Danny's DNA into the system?" Jazz asked.

"Of course we did!" Maddie answered, joining her husband in pushing random buttons.

"Did you use Danny's _ghost_ DNA or the DNA sample you guys made us take a couple of years ago?" Jazz asked again. It had just dawned on Jack and Maddie that they did not get a sample of Danny's ghost DNA. Maddie slapped herself in the face.

"Of course! How stupid of us, using the old DNA samples." Maddie said more to herself than to her husband. "Jack, we gotta turn this off before it seriously hurts Danny! Where's the emergency shut-off switch?" Jack looked at his wife quizingly, then sheepishly smile.

"Uh...about the emergency shut-off switch..." Jack began.

"You forgot to install it?!" Maddie yelled.

"I thought we won't be needing it..." Jack mumbled to himself. Maddie threw her hands up in the air.

"Great, just great. Now how are we gonna shut this thing off?" Maddie asked. Suddening, the lights went out and the siren was silenced. A couple of seconds later the lights came back on, but the system was off.

"Ahem." Someone cleared their throat, causing Jack, Maddie, and Jazz to turn towards the sound. Danny leaned against the wall and was casually pointing to the breakers.

"Well, that's one way to shut it off..." Jazz said aloud.

"Danny, are you alright?" Maddie asked her baby boy as she rushed at him.

"I'm fine, Mom." Danny replied quickly, keen to avoid his mother's famous bear hug. "I need to get going..."

"And where do you think you're going?" Asked his mother.

"I promised Sam and Tucker that we'll hang out today." Danny replied, making his way to the stairs. Jack suddenly appeared in front of the stairs, blocking Danny's way.

"Not until you've cleaned the lab, young man." Jack told his son. Danny turned around, his jaw dropped.

The lab was in complete disarray. Beakers were either overfilled or broken. Test tubes were absolutely filthy from who-knows-what. Gas was leaking from the Spector-Speeder. Ghost hunting equipment was spawled around the room. There were coffee stains on the counters and the tiled flooring. The garbage cans were overfilled and trash littered around the lab in little piles. And, most importantly, Jack's action figures were covered in ecto-plasmic goo. Danny felt outraged at this unfair, impossible task.

"What!?" He shouted. "Why me?" He asked his parents.

"Do you really want us to answer that?" Maddie said darkly. Some silence...

"Y-e-s..." Danny answered caustiously.

"Let's see here, you've lied to us."

"You broke your curfew several times." Jack added in.

"Yeah, but that was because I was hunting ghosts!" Danny tried to tell his dad. "And Jazz was out past _her_ curfew too!"

"Hey!" Jazz squealed at her younger brother. "Don't bring me into this!"

"You kept secrets from us." Maddie went on.

"You also got into trouble with the authorties." Jack chided in.

"And so did you." Danny said misbery.

"And you are irresponsible." Maddie concluded. That really got Danny to snap.

"Irresponsible? How am I irresponsible?!" Danny shouted/asked his parents. "I've been doing nothing but protecting this town since I got my powers!"

"Minus some pranks." Jazz chided in. Danny shot Jazz a glare before turning back to his parents.

"Okay, I did some pranks...but I didn't do what Vlad did." That statement made his parents flinch-for it was a very touchy topic. "Yeah, I could've used my powers for my self and my own needs. But I decided to use them for good, for the better of this city, heck, this world!" Danny sighed. "Dad, Mom. Please, can I hang out with Sam and Tucker today? You know how busy Tucker has been since he was nomiated mayor, this may be the one time this week, maybe this month, that we could all hang out together. I swear I'll clean up the lab later today. So, please? Pretty, pretty, pretty please? Can I just hang out with Sam and Tucker until dinner tonight?" Danny gave them his best puppy-dog stare. His parents glanced at each other before nodding.

"Yesss!" Danny exclaimed as he lept into the air, transforming into a ghost. "Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!" He cheered as he gaved each of his shocked parents a ghostly hug. "I promise I'll be back home for dinner!" He shouted as he fazed through the lab's wall.

"Good thing we bought the 10 o'clock showing." Sam said through her cell. Danny sheeplishly grinned.

"Hey, I'm going as fast as I can here!" Danny said into the phone as he flew over Amity Park. He was still a good way's from the movie theather that they planned to go to.

"Can we go in yet?" Danny heard Tucker say from the other side of the phone.

"No." Sam said, she voice split between the phone and Tucker. Danny chuckled.

"What are you laughing for?" Sam asked; half irritated, half amused.

"Nothing." Danny said quickly. "You can tell Tucker that-"

"_Danny_..." Said a deep, booming voice, interupting Danny. Danny flinched at the voice, for it was loud.

"Tell Tucker what?" Sam asked.

"Sam?"

"Yeah?"

"Didn't you hear that?"

"Hear what?"

"_Danny_..." The voice said again.

"That." Danny said, flinching more severely because of the loudness of the voice. It was as if someone was yelling inside his eardrums.

"_Danny...Fenton_..." The voice continued loudly. Danny felt his ears popping.

"Danny? What's wrong?" Sam asked. Danny could barely hear her.

"Sam-"

"_Danny...Phantom_..." The voice boomed so loud that Danny let go of his cell so that he could cover his ears with his hands.

The cell began its descent towards the cement street below Danny.

"Danny?" Sam asked once more before the phone crashed into the ground, breaking into little pieces.

**Okay so here's the First Chapter ^^ **

**Ah, just to tell ya there's more GRC: DP chapters and extra stuff on my account (my username is the same as on here)**

**Thanks for reading and for the reviews on the Prodgue ^^**

**Just to warn ya ahead of time I have an obsession with dream meanings. I believe that certain dreams are like premotitions (although I never seem to have any X( ). And I apologize for the terrible spelling and grammar. For someone who's in AP English, I just plain suck at Grammar...oh well :D**


	4. An Incident that Involves Death

**DB-KT here to say thanks for reading this story and for following me both on Deviantart and Fanfiction! And to the people who have written reviews for this story, you get a double chocolate chip cookie! So here ya go~!**

**Alright, so here's Chapter Two of Grim Reaper Chronicles: Danny Phantom. It's gonna be the same as it is on Deviantart except that I've pasted it onto Word so that I can fix the spelling errors (I don't care about grammar so bleh). I won't be rewriting any chapter unless I feel needed to (such as people not understanding, etc.). **

**Okay enough about me, let's begin!**

**P.S. sorry if the chapters are short. This is originally supposed to be in comic form but I don't have a drawing tablet so I'll just type it all out until then. ^^**

Danny floated in midair, waiting for the voice to return; to plague his eardrums and the hammering that resonated throughout his entire being. He waited for several moments before he opened his eyes.

He didn't even realized he closed his eyes in the first place.

His breathing was panicky as he gulped some air.

"Sam?" He asked. He waited for Sam to answer back, but impatience got the best of him. He was about to 'hang up' when he realized that his phone was gone. He glanced left to right, up then down.

There was a spot on the street.

Danny lowered himself to street-level, where he found his phone, in pieces. He grabbed a handful of the little fragments in his hand, cupped it for a bit, then let the fragments slid off his hand.

"So much for it being indestructible over 100 feet." Danny said to himself, glaring at the broken phone. Then he took off; keen to get to the theaters before something else happens.

Another one gone. Thought the man hidden in black robes, who stood above a peaceful old woman in white linen.

He was at a funeral.

He doesn't usually wait this long to release a soul; but the old woman was stubborn. The Grim Reaper was sure if she continued to inhabit her body, then she would've became a zombie-like he needs even _more_ problems to deal with. But, with patience, and the occasional white lie; he chided her to moving on.

Let her believe that she's going to heaven. He told himself. Even though he, himself, doesn't know what lies beyond this world.

He tilted his head towards the sky. As if he was listening to the air, or perhaps the priest finishing his speech?

"It is time...?" The man asked the air quizzly. Apparently he got an answer, for he sighed, his shoulders shagged underneath his robes.

The Reaper did not like this plan. He did not like this plan at all.

He can recall the hassle he had caused when his time had come; and he swore that he would not make the same mistake as his Master.

But now, he here is. Already, one part of the plan is done, for that was done years ago by himself. Back then, he did not realize who the boy was when he gave him the medallion. That he was making the boy get involved into this dimension-his world.

And he was especially not keen to have the Grimm leave from his hands.

But it was already too late. And, as his annoying old friend would say, 'Everything happens for a reason'.

He sighed, disappearing from the now soulless body. His next appointment will be...

...in Amity Park.

"Sam! Tucker!" Danny yelled as he landed in front of the movie theaters.

"Danny!" Tucker shouted. Sam turned towards Danny, tears welled up in the corner of her eyes. Danny felt numb, seeing Sam's tears. Sam rushed at Danny, who opened his arms for her. She leaned in close to Danny.

"Where were you?" Sam asked, tears beginning to slide out of the corner of her eyes. "What happened? Why did you turn off your phone?"

"I didn't turn off my phone." Danny said simply and calmly. "I-um...sort of dropped it."

"You dropped your phone?" Tucker said horrorifing. "Dude, what happened? Was it a ghost?"

"No, it wasn't a ghost." Danny said.

"Was it...that voice..?" Sam asked quietly. Danny nodded.

"A voice?" Tucker asked, confused.

"Yeah. I told you that Danny was hearing a voice."

"Did you hear it too?"

"...No..." Sam said quietly.

"Danny, is something going on?" Tucker asked. "Has anything strange happened to you lately?" Danny knows that Tucker and Sam are constantly worried for his well-being due to his parents' work.

"Well..." Danny mumbled.

"What?" Sam edged him. Danny shrugged.

"Other than the random voice in my head...I had a weird dream this morning..."

"About what?" Tucker asked. Danny closed his eyes, picturing the odd scythe in the middle of nothingness. The aura that made his senses go hay-wire. The frosty chill he felt. And the urge...the urge to hold the scythe.

"I dreamt of a scythe in a dark place." He told his best friends.

"A scythe?" Tucker asked, mildly shocked.

"What about the scythe?" Sam asked, sensing that Danny isn't telling everything.

Suddenly, Danny couldn't stand to see the look of worry in his friends' eyes. He hated himself for making them worry for him. So he turned away from their eyes, wishing that he should've kept his mouth shut.

Traffic was busy on the street.

"The scythe..." Danny said, busy trying to figure out some excuse he could use to put their minds to rest. Then it hit him. Nocturn. He could blame him. "The scythe...it had something to do with-"

"_Danny_..." The voice boomed from somewhere deep inside of Danny, making him stop telling the lie. Danny shivered.

"Danny?" Sam said with concern.

"Is it the voice again?" Tucker asked.

"Yeah." Danny said, his hand placed on his forehead. For some odd reason, the sun was unbearably bright. He turned his head away and looked across the street. What he saw waiting across the street, made him catch his breath.

A figure in long black robes stood beside a bus stop sign, a scythe in one of its pale hands. He could only see the figure's pupil less icy sky-blue eyes from under the dark hood. His senses went into overdrive; an abnormal chill was rising from the ground, crawling up his legs and onto his arms like enormous snakes.

He felt like was never going to be warm again...

But more importantly... He felt like he was gonna die...

He stared at the strange figure until a bus sped past. Once the bus cleared the sign, the figure was..._gone._ Danny began to shake.

"Danny!" Both Sam and Tucker rushed at him; Tucker placed his hand on Danny's shoulder while Sam grabbed one of Danny's arms. "What's wrong?" Danny, wide-eyed, gulped once before he spoke.

"Did see you see that?" He asked.

"See what?" Tucker asked.

"That...thing...under the black robes." Confused faces from Sam and Tucker. Danny pointed to the bus stop. "It was there! At the bus stop!"

"Black robes?" Tucker inquired.

"Danny..." Sam began. Danny felt dread from what Sam is about to say... "No one was there."

"But-" Danny began, but the voice pounded in his head again.

"_Danny...Fenton_..." The voice boomed. Danny's legs gave out, causing Sam and Tucker to catch him by his arms.

"Danny!" They both cried out. Danny shook, the voice ringing in his ears.

"_LOOK_." The voice ordered. For the second time that day, Danny had closed his eyes without his knowledge. He opened them ever so slowly.

Directly across the street from him and his friends, was a dark shadowy creature. Danny stared at it, noting the glowing red eyes and the sharp overbite. The dark creature took the shape of a cat, with its long deadly claws sprayed out on the sidewalk.

"Guys." Danny's voice cracked with a note of hysteria. He immediately got Sam and Tucker's attention. "Do you see that?" He asked, pointing to the shadow creature directly across the street from them. Sam and Tucker glanced at the other side.

"See what?" Tucker asked.

Boy-how dreaded Danny felt when his best friend confirmed that Danny could see something that they could not. It can't be YoungBlood this time.

"What is it that you see?" Sam asked Danny like he was a dog that just spotted a squirrel.

"A-a blackish creature..." Danny answered her. "It...sort of looks like...a cat."

"And where is it?" Tucker asked.

"Where I'm pointing..." Danny said. "It's right there!" Again, Sam and Tucker looked to where Danny was pointing at, but again, confusion masked their faces.

"_It's useless_..." Said the voice, vibrating throughout Danny's being. Danny flinched, trying to bend himself over as if he had an upset stomach. He hates how the voice talks to him. It's like its talking through his _soul_... "_They cannot see... They cannot hear.._."

"Wha~?" Danny asked, like he had a few drinks. His head was spinning from that darn voice.

"Danny!?" Tucker and Sam said at once.

Everything is moving too fast. Danny thought to himself as he watched the cars pass by. For some odd reason, he remembered a crash his family drove by a few weeks ago. A family of four in one car, two teenagers in the other. He will probably never forget that crash; well, the aftermath scene. The teenage boy, who was free from the car, had tears pouring out of his eyes. He was crying for his friend, who was still stuck in the car, unconscious with blood seeping from under the door and pooling under the front wheel...

His attention was snapped back into the present when the creature hunched...like it was ready to pounce... Danny was about to cried out, when the voice overwhelmed him.

"_Danny._..." The voice boomed. This time, it sounded hollow; a hollowed sadness that straggles the happiness out of everything. "_Your life is about to change_..."

The creature pounced at a car. Danny couldn't see what it did, but by the sound of the tires, it must have busted one. The driver of the now three-wheeled car, lost control. The car crazily merged over to the opposite way of the street. The man tried to regain control as the car sped towards an on-coming car; apparently the brakes were affected also. The lady in the on-coming car was texting.

She never saw it coming...

"_FOREVER_." The voice echoed solemnly as the cars crashed into each other.


	5. The Grimm and the Reaper

**Chapter Three~Enjoy!**

The cars crashed, making a sickening echo. Everyone on the street halted, and stared at the accident. Other motorists past by. Some stopped. The man, whose car was targeted by the creature (which was nowhere to be found), exited his car with a few scratches. The lady on the other hand; she was slumped against her seat.

Danny was frozen, and he wasn't the only one. Sam, Tucker, and the vast majority of bystanders stood rooted to their spots, barely breathing. The man strolled towards the lady's car. He tried opening her door. It was crushed shut. As he went to try the other doors, some bystanders broke from their spells and acted. A couple of them called 911 while four people went over to the car, trying all the other doors-which were all locked.

"I've called 911!" Cried out a bystander. "They're on their way!"

"We need to get her out." Muttered one of the bystanders that tried the doors.

"Maybe break a window?" Suggested another.

"But what are we gonna do after we free her?" Asked a different person. "I can't do CPR."

"Me either." Answered another.

"I can!" A bystander man cried out. "But how are we gonna get her out?" He asked when we arrived where the group was.

Danny felt an elbow nudge him. He looked up at Tucker.

"You can get her out." Tucker said with a sad smile. Danny looked away and shook his head. He was tired and scared. Then he felt gentle hands on his hands. They were Sam's.

"Danny?" Sam inquired. Something about her voice made him move, that made him take action, that made him realize...

...that he's_ alive_.

"Okay." Danny said with a small smile. He got up from the ground and walked towards the crashed cars.

Don't worry about those things. He told himself in his head as images of the creature and the hooded figure plagued his mind. He needs to focus, cuz, well... He IS a hero, isn't he?

"Excuse me." Danny said to the group of helpful bystanders. He needed to be as close to the lady as possible. The bystanders recongized him.

"Danny Phantom!" One of them cried out as Danny climbed on top of the ruined hoods of the head-on collision.

Danny had just reached to the lady's door when he paused.

O-kay... He thought as he stared at the faintly glowing lady. Is this normal? The lady's mouth was wide open, with a twinkle of blood escaping her lips. Her head was leaned back, like she was snoring while taking a nap. But she wasn't breathing. And her body was emiting a faint golden glow. And Danny was 99 percent sure that people don't glow; unless they were a ghost.

Danny shook his head, emptying his mind. He took a deep breath and fazed through the lady's car.

"It's alright." Danny said to the lady. He was sure that she couldn't hear him, but it calmed him at least. "We're gonna get you outta here..." He made the lady turn intangable so that he could drag her out of the wreckage. She was heavy as Danny pulled her out and laid her on the ground. All of a sudden, everyone was crowding around Danny and the glowing lady. A man cleared everyone away.

"Move! I need some space here!" He yelled at the crowd. He turned to Danny with a smile. Danny swears that the man seems familiar... "Great job, Danny. You can go now."

Danny nodded, thankful for the man allowing him to leave. But, as he left the man with the lady, he felt curiousity towards the glowing woman. He never heard of anyone glowing after an accident... Sam and Tucker ran at him.

"Dude, are you okay?" Tucker asked. Danny nodded sadly. Sam hugged him, and Danny pulled her closer; enjoying the warmth from her body, the pulsing of blood-of life.

"You were great." Sam whispered as she gave him a quick peck of a kiss. Danny grew a little warmer from the kiss, but he still felt hollow and curious. There was one last question on his lips.

"Uh..." Danny began, unsure of how to say this. Sam and Tucker exchanged looks.

"What is it?" Sam asked. Danny sighed, knowing the answer to his question already.

"Was it just me, or was that lady...glowing?" Danny asked.

And just as he suspected, Sam and Tucker gave him looks of worry and concern. But most of all: scared.

"Um...I think you're sick." Tucker said, placing the back of his hand onto Danny's forehead, then flinched away. "Dude! You're freezing!"

"I am?" Danny said as he placed his own hand on his forehead. Tuck is right. He IS freezing. Sam placed her hand on top of Danny's.

"Maybe it has something to do with your ice powers?" Sam suggested. Danny shrugged. As if his ice power had anything to do with voices, hooded figures, dark creatures, and glowing people. "You should probably go home and rest."

"Wha~?" Danny said, upset. "But we might not be able-"

"I know." Sam said. "But you're sick..."

"I agree with Sam, Danny." Tucker said, siding with Sam. "Go home and rest. We can hang out some other day."

"A-are you sure?" Danny asked, rubbing one of his arms awrkardly. He feels horrible for having to bail out on his friend because he was sick. Sam's violet eyes grew warm and she gave Danny a long kiss on his lips.

"We're sure." She said, assuring him. "Now go home and get better. We DO have school tomorrow."

Even though Danny has been in turmoil all morning so far; he felt hopefulness from Sam's love for him. He took her hands in his...

"I'll go home and rest." He told her.

"Promise to call me when you get home?" She asked him.

"Yes, I will call you when I get home." He promised her. He transformed into a ghost and flew off, waving good-bye to Tucker and Sam.

A few blocks down, Danny made a slight detour.

He has spotted the creature that caused the accident. It was in an alleyway, away from any bystanders that could get hurt. He quietly landed behind the creature, silently taking out the Fenton Thermos.

Whatever this ghost's problem is; I'm pretty sure Walker won't mind taking him in. Danny thought to himself as he stalked closer to the creature. I'm pretty sure there's a rule against hurting humans fataly.

Danny paused.

How do I know if that lady's dead? Danny asked himself.

Remember how bad she looked? He asked himself. She's gone. Dead. Out. I just know it.

Yeah, but how?

Danny shook his head. Unfortunately, the creature chose this moment to attack Danny. He barely dodged the creature's claws as it slashed through the air.

"Okay..." Danny said as he uncapped the Fenton Thermos. "Hope you like confined spaces, kitty!" Danny told the creature as the Thermos turned on. It began to suck in air. But not the creature. Heck, the creature flew at Danny, going straight through the Thermos's funnel.

"WHA~?!" Danny squealed as the creature raked its claws across Danny's left arm.

"Daa!" Danny gasped. He quickly dodged the creature's next attack. But wasn't quick enough for the next.

Luckily, the Thermos blocked it.

Unluckily, it flew out of his hand and went into an opened man hole.

"Today is just not my day." Danny grumbled to himself as he fired a ghost ray at the creature. The ray hit the creature. But it really didn't do much, for it lept back at Danny. Danny dodged the attack and, this time, fired an ice beam.

To his astoudishment, the beam went through the creature and iced the cement. The cat thing growled at Danny, who floated there, surprised.

The Thermos had no effect and neither did my ice beam. Danny thought to himself as he fired a couple more ghost rays at the creature. The creature just shook it off and attacked again. This time, Danny was too slow, and the creature bit hard into Danny's left thigh.

"Argh!" Danny yelled in pain. He went intangable, invisible. He did everything to get the creature off of him. He was panicing and becoming outraged at the same time. His anger grew until his eyes went entirely green. "Get." He began to say, green ghost energy glowing around his body. "Off." He brought his hands together. "Of." His hands were building ghost energy. "ME!" Danny shouted the last part and fired an enormous ghost ray at the creature. The creature was blown cleanly off and was clearly effected by the enormous ghost ray, but it left Danny feeling drained. Danny felt dizzy as the creature landed and hunched its body once more.

Only one more thing left to try... Danny thought to himself. He knows that it'll be risky. He'll most likely revert back to human when he uses the Ghostly Wail, but it might have the most damaging effect on the creature...

Danny gulped and wailed.

He couldn't tell whether or not this was working because his eyes were closed. He felt himself reverting back to 'Fenton' form. He lasted a couple more seconds in human form before he collasped onto the dirty street. He was absolutely drained. Blood from his injuries soaked through some of his clothing. He moaned as he tried to get up. He glanced at the creature.

The creature was recovering from the Ghostly Wail. The wail had effected him, but not to the degree that Danny was hoping for. And in the matter of miliseconds, the creature was pouncing upon Danny.

Danny stiffened, knowing that this was it...

He was going to die...

Then he heard a strange sound; a flutter of linen. He opened his eyes to darkness.

No. Not darkness.

Black-a black robe. And a blue ribbon on a wooden stick.

Danny fell over backwards, astounded.

The figure in the black robes was in front of him. The creature laid a few feet away. It hissed loudly as it got up. It lept at the figure.

"Look Out!" Danny couldn't help himself and cried at the figure.

But he didn't had to worry; for the figure raised the wooden stick-wait-scythe! Blue lightning swirled around the blade as the creature soared at the figure. Danny watched in awe as the figure swung the scythe at the creature. Danny excepted that nothing would happen to the creature, but to his surprised, the creature was howling in pain. Where the lightning had struck its body, it began to disappear into little blue specks. Before long, the creature was completely gone. The figure lowered the scythe; allowing Danny to examine it.

This scythe was different from the scythes in Danny's dream. This one had a worn wooden staff too, but it wasn't rotting. The blade was curved, reflective, and deadly sharp. A blue ripped ribbon was at the end of the scythe, fluttering like a hole-ridden truce flag. Danny continued to stare in awe at the figure until it turned towards Danny.

Once their eyes met, Danny instantly felt icy hands grip his throat and lungs. He sat there, frozen while the figure turned completely around. Danny had a question-no-many questions to ask this figure. It was building inside of him until he became bold enough to speak.

"What are you? Who are you? What just happened here? What was that creature? How did you stop it? Why did it hurt those people? Why can't anyone see you or that thing? Who are you?!" Danny asked non-stop and reasked a question. He breathed in deeply, waiting for an answer.

"_You will find all the answers to your questions_..." The figure said, its voice the same as the one in Danny's head, as its left hand went inside its robe. Danny flinched when it tugged something out. To his surprise, he recongized it.

"_At Clockworks_." The figure ended his sentence, holding one of Clockwork's medallions.

Danny was stunned and amused. Clockwork has something to do with this? Danny held out his hand and the figure let the medallion fall into Danny's. Danny glanced back up, but as he suspected (once he saw the medallion), the figure had vanished from sight. He groaned as he got up. He clutched the medallion in his hand. He glanced at it once he was standing.

To Clockworks...

After patching himself up, Danny left for Clockworks. His stomach growled as he flew through the Ghost Zone. He should've had lunch. Thankfully, he soon arrived at Clockworks. He walked in through the entry, still amazed by all the clocks. The clocks were constantly ticking and tocking, marking time for all eternity. Danny doesn't understand how Clockwork can endure all of this ticking and tocking all the time. Then again, he IS the Master of Time.

"Clockwork?" Danny asked, his voice echoing in the hallways. He walked in a bit more. "Clockwork?"

"Yes?" Answered an old man's voice. "In here." Danny followed Clockwork's voice and into the Great Room.

The Great Room has Clockwork's, as Danny would say, Time TV-which one can watch events that happen throughout time. Clockwork must've added furniture, for there was a table with two chairs and book shelves lined up against one of the walls.

"Ah, Danny." Clockwork said, still an old man. He gave Danny a hug. "It's been a while." Danny couldn't help but smile at the Master of Time.

"Yeah, it has." He agreed. "Are you excepting someone?"

Clockwork glanced at the furniture.

"Yes, I am." Danny stood there, planning out how he wants his questions answered. But first...

"Here's your medallion back." Danny said, handing Clockwork his medallion.

"Oooo." Clockwork said as he changed into a child version of himself. "Thank you, Danny. I've been wondering where it went." He floated towards the hooks that held the other medallions. Danny turned to follow him.

"Clockwork, I have a few-" Danny stopped dead in his tracks, his sentence dropped to the ground. His adrupt halt to his train of thought was caused by seeing the old scythe, which was leaning against a wall. Clockwork continued on his way to the hooks and placed the medallion on the empty slot.

"There." Clockwork said. "All accounted for."

"Clockwork...?" Danny called softly. Clockwork turned towards Danny.

"Yes?"

"What's-why's that scythe here?" Danny asked, pointing it. His pointing hand twitched.

"What scythe?" Clockwork asked, genuined confused.

"That one." Danny said, now taking a step towards it. He was enticed by it. It was like a spell had put on him. His eyes were only for the scythe as he took another step towards it. He was now about arms-length away. He reached for the scythe. Over by the shelves, Clockwork floated, now in adult form. He watched as Danny reached for the scythe.

Everything is going according to plan. Clockwork thought to himself. Suddenly, he felt an ice-cold hand on his right shoulder. He doesn't have to look back to know who it is.

The Grim Reaper is concerned.

"Don't worry old friend..." Clockwork began to say. Danny's hand was a swat away from grabbing the scythe.

"Everything will be..." Danny grabbed the scythe.

"Alright." Clockwork finished as green ghost energy covered Danny.

Danny struggled, but it was useless. He was stuck to holding the scythe. He didn't like what was happening to him. He felt cold; oh so very, very cold indeed. He could feel nothing but his clothing and the scythe that he is holding. He swore he felt more clothing on top of his suit. He became very aware of where he was all of a sudden. Languages sprung into his head and he could taste them in his mouth. A distant scream rang in his ears. The green light became so bright that Danny had to close his eyes.

What is up with me closing my eyes today?! Danny thought in the darkness of his closed eyes.


	6. The New Grim Reaper

The bright light disappeared, allowing Danny to slowly open his eyes. Everything was normal he realized. But as he turned towards the blank, reflective Time TV; his green eyes went wide.

For one thing, the black and white scythe from his dream was in his hand. The cold metal staff sliced into his palm. It took him a few more seconds to notice that the scythe was emitting a dark power into him from his hand. The other thing was that he now wore a torn up black robe over his jumpsuit. The robe somewhat hides his emblem with the help of a neon green latch by his collar. Danny stepped away from the screen, letting the scythe clang to the ground.

"Cl-clockwork?" Danny whined, still staring at himself.

Clockwork grinned at the Reaper and left his hand floating in midair. The Reaper and his hand, then disappeared from sight.

"Danny?" Clockwork called, looking this way and that for the halfa. Danny was still in front of the screen, watching his every movement.

"Clockwork? What is happening? What HAS happened to me!?" Danny shouted at the Master of Time. But either Clockwork's ears weren't functioning or he chose to ignore Danny, for he was floating away, his head whipping around.

"Danny?" Clockwork called. Danny was beginning to get annoyed at the ghost.

"Clockwork!" He shouted to the Master of Time. "I'm right here! By your Time TV!" But once again, Clockwork did not hear. Danny was irritated by Clockwork's ignorance. I'll give him something to ignore about. Danny thought as he tackled Clockwork.

Except...

That Danny went THROUGH Clockwork instead of tackling him down. Danny fell to the ground, banging his knees.

"OW!" Danny shrilled. Clockwork, on the other hand, shivered.

"Danny?" Clockwork said in the air above Danny. "Was that you?"

"Yes..." Danny moaned as he got up from the ground. "Clockwork, what the heck is going on here?" Sudden realization lit up Clockwork's face.

"The scythe..." Clockwork mumbled.

"Yeah, the scythe!" Danny exclaimed, a smile spreading across his face. He glanced towards the Time TV, where he left the scythe on the floor.

"Oh-no." Clockwork replied. Danny's smile faltered, and suddenly felt despair by the tone of Clockwork's voice.

"Clockwork?"

"Danny, I want you to listen to me." Clockwork said to the air, turning this way and that. "You better not have left." He grumbled.

"Clockwork... I'm. Right. Here."

"If you are here, Danny, then listen. I assume that you are alive since I don't see your body anywhere."

"Of course I'm-"

"That means that the Grimm has accepted you as its new Master." Clockwork continued on. Danny blinked. The Grimm? "You're probably wondering what is the Grimm. Well...the Grimm is a special scythe that the Grim Reaper uses."

"Grim Reaper?" Danny echoed.

"Yes, the Grim Reaper. Such a being does exists, Danny. And, unfortunately for you, you are now sucked into a different plane of existence. A plane that is full of demons and human souls."

"Whaaaaaaat?"

"Listen, Danny, this is very important. The Grim Reaper is the one who moves the souls of the deceased onward to a better place. He does not kill people, but comes when one is dead-or almost dead. That is the Grim Reaper's job. To help souls move onward. And if the soul doesn't wish to move on, it becomes a ghost." Clockwork was silent for a second. "As for demons, well... Demons are born from rotted souls. Souls that the Grim Reaper cannot help. Those souls are the ones that become evil and transforms into demons. They are the shadowy creatures that are blacker than the sky, and are forever causing havoc on the living and souls alike. And, often enough, they are the explanation to what you living call; 'Freak Accidents'. These are not ghosts, for they are basically lost souls. They are troublesome for everyone. And as so, the Grim Reaper's second job is to destroy these demons. There are other people that can do it, but I prefer the Reapers rather than shamans or priests."

By this point, Danny was confused. Demons. Souls. Grim Reaper. It all doesn't make any sense. He thought that the Grim Reaper kills people to steal their souls, not the other way around. And then, Clockwork just made everything even more confusing by adding in 'shamans', whatever they are. Clockwork could sense Danny's confusion, but continued on.

"Also Danny, since you are now the Grim Reaper, the Grimm is probably giving you some of its power. Which means, you are now invisible and intangible to all and everything." Danny's face snapped up at Clockwork.

"What?"

"Danny, now that you are the Grim Reaper, you are not of this world anymore." Clockwork told Danny gravely with a hint of sorrow. "No one but a handful of people can see or hear you. But don't get excited about some people being able to see you, for many, they see the Grim Reaper as an enemy. As I said before, you are now in a different plane of existence from us. And now that the Grimm has accepted you as the Grim Reaper-or as I like to say, Master of Souls-you must perform the duties of the Reaper."

Danny was shivering. Either from him being scared or his excitement, he couldn't tell. Clockwork floated up to him, as a child, and placed a hand on Danny's shoulder.

"Now, it's time for you to go." Clockwork said as his form changed into an adult.

"What?!" Danny shouted at the Master of Time. "What are you saying? All of a sudden I'm the Grim Reaper because I was stupid enough to touch the scythe?! I have to move souls to this 'onward' and destroy the same exact shadow creatures that almost killed me today!? How am I going to do this, Clockwork?!" Danny glared at Clockwork as he huffed. He suddenly realized that the scythe-Grimm-was in his hand.

"Just let it happen." Was all Clockwork said as he turned Danny around. Clockwork gently, but forcible led Danny to the entryway of his home. Something clicked into Danny's mind once they stopped at the edge of the arched doorway and Clockwork's hands left his shoulders.

"Wait...Clockwork... You can see me and hear me, can't you?" Danny asked, staring off into the Ghost Zone.

"Naturally."

"Then why-" Danny growled as he spun around to face Clockwork, but his voice faltered. The figure in the black robe was standing beside Clockwork. Or should we say...the Grim Reaper?

"_GO_." The figure's voice vibrated throughout Danny's body. It was an order; and instantly Danny felt himself disappearing. And he vanished from the Ghost Zone and back into the human world. Or, at least, in a separate dimension of the human world. The Reaper and Clockwork stood beside each other for a while longer.

"Well, there he goes." Clockwork said, like a parent seeing their child riding their bike all by themselves. The Reaper wasn't too thrilled.

"I still don't like this idea of yours, Clockwork." The Grim Reaper said in his normal voice.

"You don't have to." Clockwork replied. "But this is great practice for Danny when you're gone." The Reaper glared at Clockwork.

"I will not 'retire' like everyone else, Clockwork." The Reaper told the Master of Time. "I'm planning to keep the title of Grim Reaper forever."

"Forever?" Clockwork chuckled at the Reaper's comment. "You don't have any idea how long 'forever' is, Master of Souls." What little of the Grim Reaper's face was shown, scrunched up in annoyance.

"Well, I'm certainly not retiring anytime soon."

"I wasn't saying that you were gonna retire."

Silence.

"Clockwork." The Master of Souls said, hurt. "Are you implying that I'm gonna _die_?"

Again, silence.

"No." The Reaper said. "I'm not going to die."

"Just so that you'll know," Clockwork began with a hint of bitterness in his voice. "Danny will be the one dying first." The Reaper was stunned, anger boiling inside of him.

"Danny will not die." The Reaper said. "I'll make sure of it." And with a casual flick to his robe, he disappeared from the Master of Time.

"I'm sorry old friend." Clockwork continued, as if the Grim Reaper was still there. "But there is absolutely nothing that _we_ could do to save Danny's life...

"And especially _yours_."

* * *

**Hello again!**

**This is DB-KT saying thanks for all the reviews/favorites/follows! You guys sending me these only make me wanna continue with my story. :)**

**Yeah, this chapter is a little short. I'm sorry about that; and for the spelling/grammar errors.**

**Isn't the ending a bit spooky?**


	7. Danny's First Day

Where am I? Danny asked himself as he looked around.

In Mexico City. He answered himself. He paused.

"Wait, how did I know that?" Danny asked himself out loud. Truth is, he truly doesn't know how he knew he was in Mexico City...in Mexico. Danny glanced around. He was in a white-walled room with a window at the back that overlooked some houses. There was also a plain dresser, chair, an exposed light bulb, and a bed that had someone sleeping under white linen. But Danny knew that, deep down inside, he knew that the person under the linen was dead. That, and the body was glowing faintly from under the covers.

Having no idea of what to do, due to Clockwork's poor explanation; Danny just stood in the doorway, watching the bed.

Suddenly, a nurse went right through Danny; as if he wasn't there. She shivered.

"Whoa." She said more to herself than to her partner, who was standing right outside the doorway. "That spot's cold."

"Must be the A/C." Her partner replied. "Does he smell yet?" She was talking about the dead man under the linen.

"He_ just _died, idiot." The nurse in the room replied. "It'll be a while before he starts to stink."

"I wish they would just hurry up and take him out."

"Why? Scared of dead bodies?" The nurse joked with the other. She strolled by the sink and examined the little pouch that contained: a toothbrush, a tiny tube of toothpaste, and three bottles of lotion, shampoo, and conditioner. "He didn't even touch this." She said as she put it back. She turned around and walked out of the room, walking straight through Danny again. "Brr."

"Wait, you're not throwing it away?" The other nurse asked.

"Why should we? It's perfectly good and it'll be wasteful."

"But it's against regulations..."

"Regulations my ass." The nurse said as she and her partner walked down the hallway.

"Wait!" Danny shouted at the nurses, but neither of them noticed him. Danny tried to get other nurses attention, but also failed. So, he returned to the room with the dead man in it. Danny walked towards the bed until he was standing over the dead body. "How the heck am I supposed to...'release' his soul?" Danny mumbled to himself. He glanced at the scythe. Then shook his head. He was sure that the scythe has nothing to do with 'releasing' a soul. He placed the scythe down and stood back up. His hands twitched.

"Huh?" Danny gasped out by the sudden twitch. Once again, his hands twitched. He looked from his hands to the dead body and back again. "Ehhhh..." Danny moaned out after he put two-and-two together, a little mortified about touching a dead body. But then again, he just did it an hour ago... Danny took a deep breath.

"Okay Fenton, you can do this." He told himself as he reached down towards the dead body. His hands went through the white blanket and a little deeper before it stopped against something. Winging it, Danny sort of 'pulled' the soul out of its body.

It was the soul of an elder. Although his body was emitting a golden glow, Danny could tell that he had white hair and wore the plain blue patient outfit. His eyes were the color of coffee as the old man stare at Danny, who was holding him like he caught him from falling in the air. Danny could barely feel him because the elder was lighter than air. The old man's mouth grinned, several teeth were missing.

"Thank you." The elderly man said in Spanish.

"Um...Your welcome." Danny replied back in Spanish. Wait, since when could I speak Spanish? Danny thought to himself. Pause. And since when do I understand Spanish!? Then, Danny realized the man had vanished from his arms. Danny was about to freak out (for he thought he lost the old man) but felt that the elder had moved on and relaxed himself. With nothing else to do, Danny picked up the scythe and stood there.

"Okay..." Danny said to himself in his native tongue. "Now wha-" He stopped when he felt an immense pull. He felt the pull from all over his body. It felt like someone has grabbed every single molecule of him and was pulling him outward. Instead of fighting it, which was his first instinct, he allowed the pulling to grow. He closed his eyes as the pulling became a roar in his ears. Then, felt the pulling stop and opened his eyes.

He was now in London.

After a few hours of releasing souls in various places around the world, Danny arrived in a very familiar place.

Amity Park.

Danny quickly did his job and made a bee-line home. He flew straight through his front door.

"Mom! Dad! Jazz!" Danny cried out when he halted in the living room. No one was there. But he could hear voices coming from the basement, so he went through the flooring.

His Dad and Mom were there, along with Jazz. Also there was: Tucker and his parents, Valerie and her father, and Sam and her parents. They were all gathered around in a circle; and as so, Danny decided to plop himself in the middle in hopes of _somebody_ might see him.

His hopes were dashed as they continued to argue.

"Jack, it's been 24 hours since Danny has disappeared." Mr. Foley said. Danny glanced at Tucker's father. 24 hours!? Danny swore that it was just a few hours ago when he, Sam, and Tucker were in front of the theaters. But then again, Danny _has_ been traveling through different time zones... "Don't you think it's time to alert the authorities and send a search team?"

Jack was silent. Maddie touched her husband's arm.

"Jack, he's right. Danny has never been gone for more than a few hours." Maddie said, agreeing with Mr. Foley. Jack hung his head.

"I guess you're right..." Jack said sadly. Jazz was watching her father until realization lit up her face.

"Sam, Tucker." She began, looking right through Danny at the pair. "You said that Danny was acting strange, right?" Sam and Tucker looked at each other, debating whether or not that they should tell everyone in the room the truth.

"Guys," Danny began, hoping that someone can at least _hear _him. "Don't tell-"

"Yeah, he was." Tucker answered.

"-them..." Danny ended, glaring at Tucker along with Sam.

"And what do you mean by strange?" Jazz inquired.

"Well...he kept on hearing a voice." Tucker began. "Danny asked both of us if we heard the voice, but..."

"You guys didn't." Mrs. Manson finished. Tucker nodded.

"But that's not the only thing." Danny groaned as Tucker continued. "He said that he saw a dark shadowy creature. And the lady that died in the car accident in front of the theaters, was glowing." By this point, Danny really wanted to strangle Tucker; and so did Sam, by the looks of her face.

"Sam, is this true?" Valerie asked. Sam sighed.

"Yes, it's true..." Sam reluctantly admitted.

"So, let me get this straight." Mr. Grey said. "Danny has been hearing voices that other people cannot hear and was seeing things that were not there..."

"In other words, he's lost it." Mr. Manson said casually. Sam shot her father a look of loathing.

"Danny did not lose it!" Sam nearly shouted at her parents, tears beginning to form in her eyes. Her mother gently placed her hand on her daughter's shoulder, who shrugged it off.

"Sam, don't get upset." Her mother told her.

"Get upset? I'm not upset. I'm not upset at all!" Sam shrilled, clearly upset.

"Don't worry, Sam." Valerie told her. "We'll find him, I swear."

"And what if you can't find him?" Mrs. Foley asked. No one answered. At this point, all Danny really wanted to do is turn visible and announce that he was here and he was alright, but he couldn't do it even if he tried.

"Well," Mrs. Manson suddenly said, breaking the silence. "I believe it is time for us to leave. Sam, say good-bye to these people."

"Why?" Sam asked her mother. "Aren't we gonna help find Danny?"

"No, we're not." Mrs. Manson replied. "Pack your things Sam, we're moving."

"What?!" Everyone cried out except for Mr. and Mrs. Manson.

"What do you mean 'we're moving'?" Sam nearly shrilled at her mother. Her parents glanced at each other. Sam gasped.

"You were already planning this..."

"Sam, please try to understand." Her father began. "Since we've learned about Danny's...'gift', we've been even more worried about your safety and wellbeing."

"And this..._ghost_ hunting," Her mother chided in. "is an abomination. It is a morbid and dangerous activity that you engage in so, so carelessly."

"Carelessly?!" Sam yelled at her mother. "I've always been-"

"Danny _Phantom_ has enemies, right?" Her father interrupted her. He didn't even wait for an answer. "Of course he does. And that just puts you and everyone else around him in danger."

"Frankly, I think that's how he disappeared." Mrs. Manson said. "A more powerful ghost got to him, and now he's de-"

"NO!" Sam screamed over her mother's voice. "He's not dead!" She threw the words at her mother. "He's not dead. He's not dead. He's not dead." She chanted, tears trailing down her cheeks. Even though Danny couldn't comfort her, he still went to her side and tried to wipe the tears away. But they continued to trail down her cheek and fell onto the floor. Tucker, Valerie, and Jazz went over to give Sam a hug while Danny stepped away. The parents looked at each other, concern showing on each face.

"Come on, Sam." Mrs. Manson said. "Let's go." Sam hugged the teens back-more like gripping them with iron hands-to prevent her mother from taking her away.

"Sam! Stop acting like a child!" Mr. Manson shouted. "You three also."

"Tucker..." Mr. Foley growled. "Do you want to be grounded from your video games?"

"But, Dad..." Tucker said.

"Tucker, listen to your father." Mrs. Foley plead. Tucker let go of Sam.

"Valerie..." Mr. Grey said in a tone that made Valerie leave Sam. Only Jazz was left.

"Jazz..." Maddie said to her daughter.

"B-but." Jazz stuttered.

"Jasmine Fenton." Jack said in an authoritive tone. "Get over here." Jazz, seeing her father's face, reluctantly let go. Sam clung to Jazz.

"No, don't." Sam sobbed. Put her parents pulled her away and exited the house. Everyone could hear Sam screaming from the top of her lungs about everything, about anything. Danny wanted to leave with Sam, but he felt that he has to stay here a bit longer.

Plus it's hard to see where you're going when tears blur your vision.

"Well, we better get going..." Mr. Foley said. "Call us, and we'll help you in any way we can."

"Thank you." Maddie said to the Foleys as they left.

"I'll keep my eyes and ears open when I'm on patrol." Valerie told the Fentons.

"Thank you." Jack said as the Greys left.

The basement has never felt so empty before.

Suddenly, Jazz dashes to the counter.

"Jazz?" Jack asked. "What are you doing?" Jazz cleared off the counter until she found what she was looking for.

"Why didn't I think of this earlier?!" Jazz said as she grabbed the item. "We can use this to find Danny!" She thrust the Boo-merang out. Her parents' faces lit up, full of hope. Danny grinned from ear to ear. Of course the Boo-merang! Now, everyone will know that he is alive!

"Great idea, Jazz!" Jack compliment on his daughter. Jazz had a huge smile plastered on her face. The portal to the Ghost Zone was open, as well as the basement door and a window in the kitchen; the Boo-merang can track Danny from anywhere. Jazz raised the Boo-merang backwards, ready to set it on its course to find her missing little brother. Danny-too-was ready for the Boo-merang to find its mark.

"Find Danny." Jazz ordered the device, then she threw it.

It flew.

Then...

It dropped.

The sound of metal crashing against the tile rang in the room for hours. Along with many drops of tears onto the tile flooring. Jack and Maddie tried their best to comfort their daughter as she cried. They, too, had tears escaping from their eyes. Danny turned away, a sob making its way out of his constricted throat as he disappeared to the next soul in need.

The doctor has just announced that you have been diagnosed with cancer. All hope of living has vanished.

Congrats.

You no longer exist.

That's exactly how Danny felt.

* * *

**Okay...so this chapter is super duper short. I apologize for the spelling/grammar mistakes that Microsoft Word didn't pick up (well, I was too lazy to fix grammar mistakes)**

**Next chapter will be a lot longer due to the fact that I'm gonna post two chapters together as one.**

**It's almost 1:30am...better get my four hours of sleep in. *yawns***

**Danny: but don't you still have to do your homework**

**Me: yeah, so?**

**D: isn't it due tomorrow?**

**M: again, yeah so...?**

**D: *sighs* forget it. fail your classes.**

**M: danny, you should know by now that i don't fail my classes**

**D: says the one who procastinates.**

**M: says the one that fails in math.**

**D: ... okay. i admit, you got me there.**

**M: duh.**


	8. A New Friend in Italy

Danny's face is everywhere. On the internet, on TV...even the Jumbotron. Posters are plastered in every single settlement in the world. FBI, CIA, the Interpol, British Intelligence, Guys In White-in short-everyone is looking for one person.

Danny Fenton/Phantom.

How Danny wishes that he could just show himself. But he knows he couldn't. And even if he did, would he? How would he explain to everyone about his situation?

'Yeah, not only am I half ghost, but I'm also the Grim Reaper.' Danny pictured himself announcing that on world-wide television. He could also picture the chaos and questions as a result of his statement. Danny shook his head.

No one must know what truly has happened to him.

"Man, this sucks." Danny said to no one in particular, his voice cracking from lack of use. No wonder why no one wants to be a Grim Reaper as an afterlife career.

It's so lonely...

It was almost midnight when Danny arrived in Rome. He glanced around at his surroundings, noting the broken stones that litter the ground. He was basically in a bowl made of stone.

He was in the Roman Coliseum.

But all he really cared about right now was his job.

A young man lied on a puddle of his own blood a few feet from Danny's boots. Danny casually strolled to the man, like he was a classmate that he knew. He placed the Grimm on the ground. Danny stayed kneeling and put his hands on the man's body, ready to take the man's soul.

Abruptly, Danny's hands was pushed back.

"Huh?" Danny mumbled aloud, surprised. He pushed harder; and as a result, he was flung backwards. He landed on his rear end.

"OW!" Danny shouted, rubbing his butt. He glared back at the man, now noticing how faintly he's glowing. Danny went back to the body and stood over him. He tried one more time, this time he was cautious. Again, his hands stopped before touching the body. He felt that he was being pushed away-as if the young man's soul was fighting _against_ him. Danny stopped and watched the man. "What the heck?" He muttered to himself, clearly confused. He bent down towards the man's face, to see if he was breathing.

Suddenly, the young man's eyes flew open.

"Daaaa!" Danny shouted as he leaped backwards. He foot caught on his robe and he fell by the Grimm. "Ouch." He mumbled as he got back up. The young man also rose, but painfully slow. His black hair was dusty from the dirt. Pain was bright in his green eyes. His graphic tee and fashionable jeans were torn up; and in some spots, had blood soaked through from his wounds. The only thing on the young man that doesn't looked damaged was the muddy boots he wore-which were a little worn down. Danny threw a glare at the young man once they both were sitting upright. You could say that they were staring at each other. "Jesus, you freakin' scared the crud out of me." Danny said. The young man stared.

"I'm sorry but you also scared the crap out of me too." The young man said in Italian. Danny's face was in a perfect comedic pose. "And by the way, my name's not Jesus. It's Benedetto."

"Y-you...you can hear me..." Danny said in Italian, more of a statement than a question.

"Yes." Benedetto answered. "And if I'm not mistaken, you're not the same Reaper that I saw years ago." That perked up Danny's interest.

"The same Reaper?"

"Yeah. Your aura is nothing like that the other one had. His was gruesome." He said, shivering. "S-s-s-o cold." He chattered. Danny felt pity for the young man. He could be no more than 25 years of age. "That, and the scythe is totally different." Danny glanced back at the Grimm, seeing nothing wrong with it.

"Why are you here?" Danny asked Benedetto.

"Well..." Benedetto began, confusion screwing up his face. "I was here...I was here for..." A roar vibrated from the walls. Danny caught movement from the corner of his right eye. He grabbed the Grimm and faced to the spot where he saw movement. "...that." Benedetto ended his sentence once the demon came into light.

The demon was far bigger than the cat-like demon Danny met a week ago. The enormous demon towered over Danny and the young man. Red eyes were gleaming like small rubies. The demon reminded Danny of a frost troll in Skyrim...and a certain incident also.

Good thing Tucker isn't here to make things worse.

The demon raised its exceedingly long arms. Danny could easily predict what it was about to do; and in response, he rose the Grimm. An image of how the other Reaper used the Grimm as a conductor for his own powers, Danny tried to do the same thing. Green energy was waving in and out of the scythe. Danny believes that he is doing is right, and was about to strike the demon when Benedetto cried.

"Look out!" Benedetto shouted at Danny. Danny was distracted from the sudden shout, opening up his defenses for the demon. The demon did not hesitate as it struck Danny. Danny's knees collapsed from the demon's blow and fell face first into the rough cobblestone. The demon, then charged at the helpless Benedetto. Benedetto tried to get up, but his legs were still too weak and collapsed on him as the troll-like demon rushed at him.

"No!" Danny yelled as he leapt up with the Grimm in his hands. He flew to the troll, the Grimm glowing with green ghost energy. "Leave him alone!" He shouted as he swung the Grimm short of the target. Luckily, the green energy flew from the scythe and slashed the backside of the troll. The troll howled in pain. A grin appeared on Danny's face. But the smile was wiped clean once the troll caught him by its elbow.

"Reaper!" Benedetto cried out as Danny tumbled to the ground. The troll-like demon was upon Danny once more; its arms raised above its head, ready to pound the living out of Danny. Suddenly, a random rock past through the troll and fell short from Danny. "Hey ugly!" Benedetto shouted at the troll. The troll turned around, its attention on Benedetto. That gave Danny enough time to strike at the demon once more. A satisfying howl escaped the demon's mouth.

Now with two deep injuries, the demon wisely backed away from the pair. Danny moved in front of Benedetto in a protective way, the Grimm in-between them and the troll.

"Thanks dude." Danny quickly said, still watching the demon.

"You're welcome." Benedetto said. The demon continued to back away. "It's running away!"

"On it." Danny said as he flew at the demon. He was about to strike the demon again, when its arm whacked Danny in his face. "Ugh!" Danny moaned as he landed on the ground. He quickly stood up to face the demon, but the troll-like demon has vanished. "Oh, great. He got away."

"We have to go get him..." Benedetto said as he tried to get up again, but his legs swayed. Danny rushed to catch to him.

"I don't think you're going anywhere." Danny said as he repositioned Benedetto. Blood was dripping from Benedetto; and Danny could tell that if Benedetto doesn't get his injuries taken care of, he _will_ end up dead. And frankly, Danny doesn't want another person to die unless he could do something to prevent it. "Hold on to me." Danny ordered Benedetto, who willingly obeyed. They took off and left the Coliseum, heading towards a nearby hospital that Danny somehow knew where it was at.

"We need to..." Benedetto pants out. "...find that demon...before he...gets another girl..." This peaked Danny's interest.

"The demon has been attacking girls?" Danny asked.

"Yes." Benedetto said as they flew over rooftops. "There has been reports for the past month about little girls found dead. The priests that perform the funeral services found traces of demon aura from the bodies. That, and the fact that their souls were _gone_."

"What?"

"You're new?" Benedetto asked Danny, a little confused. Danny nodded his head. "Well, I might as well tell you then. Anyways, demons hunt humans to eat their souls. They do this so that they can become more powerful."

"Wait, are you telling me that demons can gain powers?"

"The most deadly and dangerous demons do. Those are the ones that not even the Grim Reaper can destroy..."

"How you do know all this stuff?" Danny asked. He spotted the roof to the hospital.

"My Master, mostly; he was the one who sent me here to take care of the demon. And the Grim Reaper also taught me a thing or two." They landed in the hospital's lawn. Benedetto had a look of confusion. "The hospital...?"

"Benedetto, you need medical attention." Danny replied. He let go of Benedetto and took a step away. "I'll deal with the demon."

"No!" Benedetto said as his hand reached out and grabbed a side of Danny's robe, pulling it in a way that revealed his emblem. Uh-oh... Danny thought as shock flashed across Benedetto's face. Panic fluttered in Danny's chest.

"You're-" Benedetto started to mumble, but Danny (without thinking) whacked him on his head so hard that Benedetto fell to the ground, unconscious.

"Sorry, Benedetto." Danny said as he stepped away. There were now nurses rushing towards the fallen Benedetto. "But this is what's best for you...trust me." And with his final words, Danny took off, in search of the troll-like demon.

* * *

Danny has spent the last four hours in Rome, searching that darn troll-like demon.

Maybe having Tucker here would be a good idea after all...

He stood at a corner, watching the early risers/late night workers wonder the streets. Danny's surprised that he hasn't felt the tugging that indicated that someone has died. He crossed the street, going through a speeding car.

"Where the heck is that demon?" Danny asked to the sky; his arms opened wide, like he was about to catch someone falling from the sky.

"He's in the warehouse district." Answered a voice behind Danny. Danny turned around to face the familiar voice.

"Benedetto?!" Danny cried out in surprise. Benedetto grinned broadly; in new clean clothes with bandages. "W-why are you here?"

"Isn't it obvious?" Benedetto said teasingly. "They let me out." Danny doubt it.

"With life threatening injuries?"

"Well...more like escaped, i guess..." He knew it.

"And won't they be looking for you?"

"Yeah, but if we keep moving, then they won't find me." Benedetto said, leading Danny into an alleyway.

"What did you mean by the demon's at the warehousing district?" Danny asked.

"I tracked it of course."

"You can track demons? How?"

"You really are new to this, aren't you?" Benedetto said. "Well, you see...I guess it's like your ghost sense." Benedetto said, winking at Danny. Oh yeah. He knows my identity. Danny thought to himself. "All you have to do is to open your senses to your surroundings. Once you sense a demon's aura, you...I guess...'grab' it? Either way, you just keep the scent and track it." Benedetto glanced at Danny.

"What?" Danny said in a depressing tone.

"Did I just made you confused?" Benedetto asked. Danny nodded his head. "Um...I'll try to teach ya when we find the demon."

"You're not a good teacher, are you?" Danny asked.

"Yeah...I'm not..."

Benedetto led the way to the demon. It was almost five when Danny felt a wave of what he called 'dark energy'. He shivered; Benedetto noticed.

"You feel that?" He asked Danny.

"Yeah."

"That's the demon's aura. All demons have the same dark energy. Although, the intensity differs by how powerful the demon is."

"Is this demon powerful?"

"Yes, but I've sensed worse." They followed the demon's aura. The closer they got to the demon, the more the air became tense and dense at the same time. They halted at a T way. Benedetto stopped and slowly approached the corner with Danny right behind him. "He's on the left." Benedetto hinted Danny. Danny nodded and hefted the Grimm. They crept to the corner, their backs against the wall. They nodded at each other once more and moved.

The demon was hunched over something in the middle of the alleyway. He turned when he heard them entering the alley. Danny raised the Grimm, ready to attack. One of the demon's demented long arms reached down and picked up an object. Danny was about to swing the scythe, but Benedetto stopped his arm from swinging down.

"Danny! Don't attack! He's holding a child!" Benedetto cried out.

Benedetto was right, the demented troll was holding a small girl like a shield. Both Benedetto and Danny swore in Italian. They cannot attack the demon without harming the girl. The demon smiled its crooked teeth, knowing that he has won. He backed away slowly, still holding the girl as a shield.

"Benedetto, we have to do something!" Danny told him. Benedetto's face was full of concentration. Then Danny came up with something. "Hey...I think I have an idea...but it's a little cowardly."

"Cowardly is good right now, let's hear it." Danny quickly muttered the plan to the Italian, keeping their eyes on the demon. Once Danny stopped, they nodded their heads. Danny stepped forward.

"Hey there, you demented troll." Danny said cockily. "I wonder what kind of sucky items I'm gonna get from you?" Benedetto suddenly came from behind and charged at the demon. The demon stroked at Benedetto, who barely dodged the swing. He quickly went back to where Danny used to be. Before the demon realized that Danny had vanished, Danny came from behind and struck the demon's back. The troll-like demon dropped the little girl. Benedetto rushed back and caught the little girl just in time. He winced as the weight of the girl strained his injuries.

The troll howled in pain. It now has three major injuries. And is full of rage.

Danny tried to strike again, but the troll backhanded him. Danny was slammed against the wall. Once he recovered, he realized that the demon has once more disappeared.

"Great." Danny muttered. "We lost him again!" He turned back towards Benedetto, who laid the little girl on the ground. "What are we gonna do with her?"

"I've contacted my Master." Benedetto said, placing a jacket on the little girl. "They're nearby and they'll be able to pick her up."

"You have a cell phone?"

"No...why?"

"Then how does your Master know?"

"By our bond." Benedetto casually. He saw that Danny was clearly confused. "Do you wanna-"

"Don't." Danny told him. He doesn't want to become even more confused than he already is.

"Come on, we need to get into a more open space so that it's easier to track the demon." They went out of the alleyway and into the street. Benedetto abruptly swayed to his left. Danny quickly caught him.

"Benedetto?" Danny asked, concern. Benedetto mumbled.

"I'm sorry Danny." He began to say. "But I'm too weak to track that demon..." Danny's worried for Benedetto. His injuries are still causing him pain, but its not like they're killing him at least. "Can you set me down on that bench over there?" Benedetto asked. Danny did what was asked of him and placed Benedetto on the bench. "Danny, can you do me a favor?"

"Um...sure. What is it?"

"Can you tell me when I'm dying?" Benedetto asked him. Danny just stared at the young Italian.

"Benedetto, you're not going to die."

"Hrm! Everyone dies eventually Danny." Benedetto said with a grin. "You of all people should know this." Danny knew what Benedetto said is true, but he still doesn't want to hear it. So he changed the subject.

"Benedetto, since you can't track the demon in your...um...current condition...may I give it a try?" Danny asked.

"Go ahead." Benedetto told him. "But it'll take a while. First timers have it hard."

Danny nodded; and tried to release his senses. But it was really hard to concentrate with your eyes open. So he closed his eyes. He also ignored what was going on around him. He slowly felt himself detach from this world. Suddenly, many different auras rushed at him, causing Danny to falter. He panted back into this world. Benedetto was watching him closely.

"You almost had it." Benedetto said happily. Danny scrunched his eyes again and repeated the drill. This time, he was barely breathing...as if he was dead. Benedetto was still watching. "You know it took me almost a year to mas-" He stopped.

He gaped at Danny in awe and shock as great pools of ghostly green energy emitted from his body. Green blobs floated upward and disappeared a short distance later. Benedetto could feel Danny's aura overpowering him-wait-this aura is different from when they first met. This aura was much darker...more powerful...

It was the aura of a Grim Reaper.

Benedetto stood up from the bench and slowly walked towards Danny, coldness biting at his ankles with each step.

"Danny?" Benedetto said quietly. Suddenly, Danny's free hand snapped and grabbed Benedetto by his shirt. The green energy disappeared as Danny hunched, dragging Benedetto lower to the ground.

"Found him." Danny growled happily. "And this time, we're not walking." That last statement continued to hang in the air after Benedetto and Danny disappeared from sight.

They reappeared across Rome, in the Baths of Caracalla. They stood in-between the half-risen stone walls. Danny looked around.

"Okay, is it just me, or is everything in this city in ruins?" Danny asked Benedetto.

"It's just you." Benedetto answered. He shivered as they got closer to the demon. "Where is he?"

"Down this way." Danny led the way to the demon. "Wait." He halted, causing Benedetto to almost run into him.

"What?"

"The demon. Its moving..."

"To where?" They heard a low growl and glanced up a tall stone tower. The troll-like demon was sitting on the top of it, its claws poised to attack. It leapt down upon Danny and Benedetto. Danny grabbed Benedetto and together, they flew backwards to avoid the demon's attack.

"Here." Danny said when they stopped. He moved the Grimm in front of him. The troll growled, keen to finish this. "Benedetto, just stay out of my way." Benedetto looked up at the ghost-reaper-teen.

"Whatever you say, Reaper." Benedetto said. Danny shivered. It felt weird to be called a Reaper. Nether less, he had a job to do.

This time, Danny was the first to strike. Danny swung green energy filled Grimm at the demon, slicing its front side. The demon buckled, and swung its arms at Danny, who easily dodged the attacks.

"Is that all you got?" Danny said, cockily. He, then, received a claw to his shoulder. "Da?!" Danny cried out. His blood was slowly oozing from his wound. But Danny brushed it off. He attacked again, slicing deep enough into the demon's body to cause some specks of it to disappear from its body. The demon howled in pure agony. It threw itself at Danny, like a wild beast. Danny easily dodged the demon and swung the Grimm once more at the troll.

It hit its target. The last cut went deep enough to cause the demon to disappear. It howled like a banshee as it was torn apart. Danny prayed that this isn't how it would like to be torn apart molecule by molecule. The demon was destroyed by the time the sun begun to rise. Danny let out a breath that he didn't realize he was holding. He glanced at Benedetto, who was smiling broadly like a proud father.

"Well done." He said to Danny as he walked over.

"Thanks." Danny said. "I couldn't have done it without you." Benedetto looked away. Suddenly, Danny felt the tugging, indicating that someone has died. Benedetto must've seem the look of Danny's face and knew that his friend was going to leave.

"So, this is good-bye huh?"

"Yeah...you know...Grim Reaper stuff and all that..." Danny was about to disappear when he realized that he forgot to asked Benedetto something. "Hey, Benedetto?"

"Yeah?"

"Can you please not tell anyone that-that..."

"You're the Grim Reaper?" Benedetto finished for him. He chortled at Danny's question. "Oh yeah, I'm totally gonna tell everyone that you're the Grim Reaper. Just imagine the horror and chaos that'll cause."

Huh, sounds familiar.

"Then, I guess, this is good-bye, Benedetto." Danny said as he began to disappear.

"Yeah, see ya again, Danny Phantom." Benedetto said. "The Grim Reaper." He added out loud once Danny had disappeared.

After a few hours of doing nothing by tracking a demon, Danny was back into the pace of helping souls move onward. As he did his job, he thought about the time he spent with Benedetto. Clockwork warned him that people who can see the Grim Reaper also see him as an enemy, but obviously not Benedetto. Danny grinned to himself as he finished his job. He is so gonna visit Benedetto again; hopefully once everything is back to normal. Danny was in great spirits as he moved on to the next soul.

It's good to have a friend.

* * *

**On Deviantart, this chapter is actually two...just so that you know.**

**Ah, Danny has met a little buddy! Well, he's not little at all...and he's 22 so...yeah...**

**Benedetto has a profile on my Devaintart account in a folder called Grim Reaper Chronicles Extra that's in my gallery. (Should be in the last folder.)**

**Danny: Yea! I got a friend from Italy!**

**Me: Yeah. Too bad you're not going to see him again. ^^**

**D: O.o Are you trying to tell me that...that...Benedetto is...is gonna die?! :(**

**M: No...you're just not gonna see him for the rest of the story.**

**D: What!? Then what was the point of him appearing?!**

**M: I have my reasons. :3**


	9. Tucker's Pain

It's been two weeks since Danny has disappeared from the world of living, and Danny has been getting depressed lately. The adventure in Rome with Benedetto cheered him up a bit for a few days, but even that was beginning to wear him down.

It's very hard to stay happy when the dead surrounds you.

Danny has been noticing lately that he's becoming increasingly distracted each day. He would stare at everything. The children, the cars, the squirrels, heck even the trees. Everything around him was full of life and happiness, even the souls he released were exceedingly happier than he is.

He was jealous of everyone and everything.

Around three o'clock in Amity Park, Danny appeared at a murder scene.

Out of all the situations that he has overseen, he hates murder scenes the most. If he appeared early enough that no one has responded yet, he would have to deal with bloody scene all by himself. Other times, he appears when emergency responders were there. Danny doesn't know why, but he felt like they knew that he was there; and it calmed him. And once, he had to do his job while the murderer was still there. That one time, all Danny really wanted to do was to kill the murderer himself. But he couldn't do it. He felt that he would be robbing another life, just as the murderer had done. And Danny doesn't really want to be classified as a murderer. This time, however, Danny was all by himself. He rushed through his job and flew out of the window. He hopes someone would discover the dead body soon. Out of the corner of his eye, Danny could see Town Hall.

And there was a huge crowd there.

Interested, Danny floated towards Town Hall. Memories stirred at the sight of Town Hall. Walker taking over the mayor, making Danny a public enemy in his own town (God, that was horrible). And when Vlad was in office, he and Danny would try to ruin each other by childish pranks and other means. Even though Danny is happy that Vlad is now gone, somewhere deep down inside of him really misses his fruit loop uncle of his. I mean, who with ghost powers can he really prank on now?

Danny stopped at the edge of the crowd. Tucker was on the steps, along with several bodyguards, addressing to the citizens of Amity Park. Danny's real proud of his best friend. He remembered when Tucker was trying to run for class president at school and totally failed. Now, he's the youngest mayor to ever be in office in Amity Park; probably the country. Danny was listening to Tucker when something black caught his eye.

A demon was slinking over the lintel, which was on top the row of columns. This demon looked like a mixture of a monkey and a bird, like those flying monkeys from the Wizard of Oz. The demon was on a loose block of limestone that was directly above Tucker. Black wings were extended as if it was about to take flight; a snooty sneer on its face. Danny did not like the look of things, and took off after the demon. The demon saw Danny and flew, causing the limestone to fall...onto Tucker.

"Tucker!" Danny shouted. He froze in midair. Even if he could make it to Tucker, he couldn't save him; for he would just go through Tucker.

Miraculously, an attentive bodyguard spotted the limestone block (heck, maybe even the demon) and quickly acted to push Tucker away from the danger. The limestone slammed into the cement, creating a huge hole where Tucker once stood. Debris fell onto Tucker and his bodyguards, but all they received was scratches and a few bruises. Danny sighed, happy that his best friend wasn't squashed.

Which is more to say for the demon...

The demon didn't fly too far, for it wanted to see Tucker's demise. It howled like, well, a monkey once Tucker avoided death. The demon flew at Tucker, claws outstretched.

"No you don't, you stupid baboon!" Danny insulted intentionally as he tackle the demon. They flew all the way through Town Hall and landed in the deserted back. They tumbled around before they separated. Danny held the Grimm as the monkey thing crouch, growling at Danny. "No one kills my best friend except for-" Danny suddenly stopped talking. He was going to finish it with 'me', but that wouldn't sound right...

The monkey thing flew at Danny, who dodged it. They continued to do this several more times, each taking turns attacking and dodging. Eventually, the fight took flight, and they fought a couple hundred feet above the ground. Danny was getting tired of this and broke the sequence. He didn't attack, only dodged; hoping that the demon would soon tire, which it did. Danny decided to punch the demon, which was very satisfying. Danny grinned as the monkey recovered, time to finish this...

"Hey, Flying Monkey!" Danny announced. The monkey demon looked at Danny, who posed the Grimm as if he was about to strike. "Didn't you know that the Wicked Witch of the West was hiring flying_ blue _monkeys?" Danny swung the Grimm, hitting the demon-who was destroyed in seconds. Danny snorted. "If only you were blue instead of black." He then, turned to go see Tucker.

The officials postponed the mayor's address. Danny took a guess and flew inside Town Hall and into the mayor's office. Man, how weird it was to see Tucker in Vlad's former seat. Tucker was alright, with just a bandage or two showing; taking a nap. He was leaned back in his chair, snoring, as Danny landed besides him. Danny looked at his desktop.

Other than the normal electronic devices that Tucker would rather die than be separated from; there were several small stacks of paper. There was also a poster of Danny's info and picture. Danny knows that Tucker designed the poster; frankly he knew this because of Tucker's huge watermark in the background. Instantly, Danny felt his best friend's love and care from their deep friendship. He grinned to himself, somehow knowing that their friendship will last forever. Danny chuckled and glanced to his right.

His face went slack.

There were many pictures of him, Tucker, and Sam; as they were doing a variety of activities at different times of the day. There was one that Danny recognized that Sam took of him and Tucker sleeping with each other at the observation tower when he was doing a report on Purple-Back Gorillas. Another one showed the three of them in a line, Danny's arms around each of his friends' shoulders; the same exact one he has in his locker. Them, at homecoming night (after Danny had to battle with a dragon Sam). At a Dumpty Humpty concert with Dash, Paulina, and Kwan sitting beside them-bummed. And there were many pictures of Danny in his ghost form; him, Tucker, and Sam playing video games; etc. It took Danny a little while to notice that some pictures had water spots on them.

Like teardrops...

His heart sank; knowing the pain that he has caused to his friends and family. And somehow, that made him upset-like boiling hot upset. Then, Danny snapped. He roared in the room, tears falling from his face.

"Why me!?" He screamed as he cried. "Why am I stuck doing to stupid, sucky job while everyone else is free to do whatever they please? Don't I have enough on my plate; being half ghost, a hero to the world?!" In anger, he tried to destroy the room, to damage the furniture, to damage anything. To prove that he was here, to prove that he is still in existence. But because of the darn Grimm's abilities, Danny couldn't do anything other than to be a random cold spot cold spot in the room. He stopped, his shoulders jerked as he slowly calmed down.

Danny was still sniffling his tears away when Tucker woke up from his nap. He yawned and stretched his arms. Danny watched Tucker as he did his mayor duties for a while, noting Tucker's sadness as he worked. Tucker's face had become a mask of sorrow and pain. Danny couldn't stand seeing his best friend's face like that, so he turned away. Then he felt the tugging, and Danny knew he must leave.

As Danny was about to leave, he heard Tucker say something.

"Dude, where are you?" Tucker asked sadly to the emptiness of the room. Danny looked at Tucker.

"I'm right here..." Danny answered.

Even though he knew Tucker would never to be able to hear his answer.

* * *

**Very short chapter.**

**I'm sorry for all of the grammar mistakes (I think I got most of the spelling taken care of).**

**Anyways, yeah, Tucker's chapter is pretty short. I sort of added this chapter on a whim because I realized that it's no fair to Tuck to not have a chapter while Sam could. (Oh, and Sam's is gonna be very sad and depressing [I hope someone will cry ^^]).**

**Again, I apologize for the short and grammar errors.**

**Reviews are always welcomed!**


	10. A Pained Reaper

"It's been 30 days since Danny Phantom has disappeared." Rang a news lady's voice. Two pictures of Danny appeared on the screen: one in his human form, the other in his ghost form. "Authorities are still searching for the half boy, half ghost. Anyone who has information about this teenage hero, please call this number." The number flashes on the bottom of the screen. "There is a now a ten thousand dollar reward for anyone who provides information leading to the whereabouts of this teen."

"There's a ten thousand dollar reward?" Danny asked the lady on the screen. Pft. As if she could hear me. Danny thought. He was in Times Square in New York City; and felt that he could relax here for a bit until 'duty' comes tugging. Even though there is now a ten thousand dollar reward, Danny knows that Benedetto won't tell on him. It seems like he and Benedetto both know just how the world would react if everyone knew what truly happened to Danny.

The tugging sensation began to crawl all over his body.

"Fine!" Danny snapped, lately he's became exceedingly irritated due to his situation. "I'm going, I'm going! Sheesh." And he disappeared from the crowded living beings.

Yup, Danny's losing it.

And he's not even realizing it.

Danny appeared in a hospital outside of Omaha. This time, Danny was here for a baby's soul.

He hates baby souls.

But not as much as he hates pre-mature souls.

He has realized, in a month since becoming the Grim Reaper, that the younger someone dies, the hotter the soul is. This past week, he had to release a baby's soul...while it was still in its mother...in other words, a miscarriage. Even though it was a miscarriage, apparently, the baby was developed enough to have a soul. Thus, it was pre-mature. And unfortunately for Danny, he had a job to do; and he tried to do it quickly.

Key word: Tried.

Danny had to try three times to hold the baby's soul, for it was so hot that it was burning his hands-and that's something cuz he wears gloves over them. And the soul... It was so bright. It was probably brighter than the sun. Danny eventually got the job done. After the soul was released, he had to sit down for a while as the mother wailed for her loss.

Danny felt numb and hallow after what he had just did. Seeing a soul so bright...so hot that it burned his hands; he felt utterly exhausted. There was something about releasing a new soul such as this that was different from the older souls that Danny had released. For once, he felt that he had actually robbed a life.

And he felt absolutely terrible about it...

But luckily for Danny, this baby was already born. He waited over its bed, counting down till its last breath. He ignored the nurses in navy as they rushed by the room and the parents that snored softly as they slept in the leather armchairs. The machines that marked the baby's life continued to beep, tracking its heartbeat. It's been almost two minutes, and the baby is still not dead.

"Jeez, kid." Danny said, getting a little impatient as if he was stuck in rush hour traffic. A nurse walked in with an electronic tablet, probably entering information, but Danny ignored her and continued. "Why don't you hurry up and die?"

A gasp.

"Danny?"

Uh-oh... Danny thought as he turned around towards the voice.

It was the nurse. Her chocolate eyes were wide as they stared at Danny; her brown hair in a ponytail. She wore the same navy blue uniform as the rest of the nurses. A small bundle of tiny medals hung from her nametag. Her face was in utter disbelief.

"Danny? Wha-wha?" The nurse began, her eyes sweeping all over Danny, not sure where to begin. Danny took a step backwards, clearly unsure what to do. The nurse took a couple of deep breathes to calm herself and looked at Danny with a bit of happiness in her eyes. "Danny...do you remember me?"

"Remember you?" Danny asked. He was debating whether or not to pull a Visit 'n Vanish, a hospital version of a Dine 'n Dash.

"Danny," The nurse began, quieter this time. "it's me. Your Aunt Natalie."

"Aunt Natalie?" Danny said.

"Yes, now come with me." His aunt said, grabbing the arm opposite of the Grimm and dragged him away.

Aunt Natalie... Danny repeated to himself. Then, it hit him.

It's been a couple of years since he's last seen his Aunt Natalie. She's Maddie younger sister. And she's the reason why Danny calls Vlad "Uncly Vlad", because of the marriage with Vlad's younger brother-Maximilian Masters. God, Danny loved visiting his aunt and uncle, but not their daughter-his cousin-Katherine. She looked exactly like her mother, except for the eyes-she had her father's eyes. Danny disliked her because she's always rude and was very aggressive for a girl. Last he heard from them was when they lived in Boston.

Natalie flashed her ID to a black pad to unlock a door. It beeped and she pushed through, tugging Danny along with her into the room. They were in the nurses' locker room. One side of the wall was dedicated to the nurses' lockers. The wall adjacent had a: sink, refrigerator, and microwave. The wall next to that had two computers on stand by and a little hallway that led somewhere. By the door held a rack for the cell-like phones that the hospital requires the nurses to wear. Also, there was a rack for their electronic tablets. In the middle of the room was a two-seat wide long table.

Natalie led Danny to the back hallway and pushed him into a room with two comfy chairs. One wall had a countertop with a sink and a long mirror. It felt oddly homely and relaxing.

"Whoa." Danny said as Natalie shut the door behind her. "This room is cool."

"This is the nursing room." Natalie said.

"Nursing room? As in, the nurses come in here to hang out?"

"No. As in, mothers bring their babies in here and feed them." Natalie told Danny, who immediately blushed.

"Oh. I didn't know..."

"It's okay, Kathy was the same way." Natalie told Danny so that he wouldn't be too embarrassed. "Why don't you sit down for a bit? You must be tired from working as a Grim Reaper." Danny was shocked. His own aunt knew about the Grim Reaper, something that he thought had never existed until now.

"Nah, I'm good." Danny told his aunt, even though he really wanted to sit down, he knew that he'll just go through the chair. He felt Natalie's eyes on him.

"Then do you want anything to eat?" She asked. At first, Danny was going to say, 'Duh!'. But then he realized that he won't be able to actually 'eat' it. That, and if he somehow does manage to eat, he might see something that would make him puke it all out when he leaves to do his job.

"No thanks." Danny politely said.

Silence.

"Danny..." Natalie began. "What are you doing here?"

"What do you mean by that?" Danny answered. "I'm sort of the Grim Reaper you know..."

"Yes, I can see that, Daniel. But what I meant was why you are the Grim Reaper?" Danny's mouth opened, and then closed. He lowered his head. One of his hands began to awkwardly nub the back of his neck. Even he doesn't know why he's the Grim Reaper, only that he was stupid enough to get himself into this mess. Natalie, too, was quiet. So, instead of answering her, he asked his own question.

"How did you know that I'm the Grim Reaper?" He asked her. She must've worked it out that Danny doesn't know the answer to her question, because she answered his.

"You see a lot of stuff when working in a hospital." She sighed out, suddenly looking much older than she really is. "But, I've always been able to see things that my sisters could not... Shadows with red eyes..."

"You mean demons?"

"Demons?"

"The shadows with red eyes-those are called demons." Danny explained to his aunt. "And you can see them?"

"Yes, I can see them. Not as clear as the Grim Reaper, but I can see them nether less." His aunt replied. Danny wondered what his aunt meant by 'not as clear'.

"What do you mean by 'not as clear'?"

"Well... It's a little fuzzy." Natalie said, her eyebrows knitted together. "I can't really describe it, but it's inconsistent. One second, the shadow- or as you say, demon-would be there, and the next, gone."

"Gone?"

"Well, not gone, gone. But just not in my sight."

"But you have no problems seeing Grim Reapers?"

"There more than one?" Natalie asked Danny, and then giggled. "It doesn't matter, but yes. I do see Grim Reapers a lot more clearly than those 'demons' I guess."

"And what about souls?" Danny asked. Natalie gave him a look.

"Souls?" She asked her nephew. Danny pulled back his lips, realizing that he might've said more than he wanted.

"Um...never mind." Danny said quickly as he looked away, towards the mirror. He had never realized how dull and gray he's become. Even his lime green eyes seemed duller and lifeless; a huge difference from the usual ghostly glow. He saw see his aunt watching at him through the mirror. "What?" He said to the mirrored image of Natalie.

"Danny, everyone's been looking for you. How come you haven't-"

"Told anyone?" He finished her sentence. He giggled-which had a hint of mental insanity-before he talked again. "You think that people are gonna believe in the person that says that I'm a Grim Reaper?"

"Okay then." Natalie agreed, seeing his point. She glanced at the black and white scythe in his hand. "How about the scythe?"

"The Grimm? What about it?"

"Why do you have it?" She asked him. Danny shrugged.

"Because...I use it to destroy the demons..." Danny answered his aunt. He paused. "And it sort of made me become the Grim Reaper..." Danny added, remembering how he became the Grim Reaper in the first place.

"I see." His aunt said, nodding. For some odd reason, it sounded a little familiar to her. An idea popped into her head. "Couldn't you, like, give it to someone else; so that you can become normal again?"

"Give it to someone else?" Danny repeated to himself. If he were to give the Grimm to someone else, then he should go back to being normal. Well, HIS kind of normal. But instead of feeling grand about this idea, he grew angry. He couldn't tell why he was so upset at his aunt's suggestion nor where the boiling anger came from as it quickly consumed him. "Why would I give the Grimm to someone else?!" He snapped at his aunt, who flinched at Danny's loud voice.

"Danny...it was just an idea..."

"Well, it's a terrible idea!"

"Danny, calm down." His aunt told him.

That did it; every last sane thought in Danny's head was completely blown away and was replaced by rage.

"Calm down? Calm Down!? How can I Calm Down in this situation I'm in?!" Danny roared at his aunt, not caring if he was being rude nor if he was scaring her. "How can I, when I have to release the souls of the dead? You're telling me to be calm? Well, we'll see how calm you are if you had to stand in the middle of a bloody street with bullets flying and things being blown up and pieces of dead bodies are flying everywhere?! How calm will you be if you were suddenly mauled by a trained tiger that you've had tamed for the past ten years? How calm would you be if you're in a car that's sinking in a river with water pouring in? How calm would you be if you knew that you're never going to see your family again and that you're gonna die?!" That last statement caused tears in Danny's eyes; and he closed them as he continued, this time talking about himself. "How calm would you be if you can't even sit down, unless its the stupid floor? How calm would you be if you hadn't ate or slept for a month?!" He took a deep breath, and screamed at the top of his lungs.

"HOW CALM WOULD YOU BE IF YOU HAD TO DO WHAT I DO EVERY SINGLE FUCKING DAMN DAY!?"

And what was Natalie's answer?

She left her chair and hugged him.

She hugged him even though he was in rage. She hugged him even though tears were trailing down his face. She hugged him even though he's the Grim Reaper. And her hug, caused the boy to calm down. It caused the boy's hand to loosen, letting the Grimm fall onto the carpet. But most of all, her hug caused the boy to hug back. They stood there, embraced. The aunt comforting her nephew while tears trail down his face and sobs racked his chest.

"Everything will turn out for the best." Natalie softly whispered to the young Reaper's white hair.

"How would you know?" He asked her, his green eyes glinting with some life that had returned.

"I just know."

"Is that..." Danny began, unsure if he should be asking this to his aunt-if she too may begin to bawl if his voiced his question. "Is that what you've told yourself when...when...Uncle Max..." Natalie smiled, knowing what Danny was tiring to voice out. A topic which everyone, including herself, has been avoiding for the past seven years.

"Yes, it is." Natalie answered. She's been telling herself that for these past several years...

Ever since her husband moved on...

Unfortunately for the aunt and nephew, an alarm went off. They instantly separated, each acting like professionals in their own respectful jobs. Danny grabbed the Grimm without a second thought as he went through the wall, knowing who it was, while Natalie had to go around finding out who the alarm was for.

It was for the baby in room 312.

They parents had woken, and were freaking out over their baby. The nurses hurried, doing what they were trained to do. Trying to do everything in their power to save the baby's life. Aunt and nephew glanced at each other, knowing that they must do their jobs even though both knew the outcome. Natalie rushed at the baby, helping the other nurses while Danny strolled towards the lot, wanting to finish this. Natalie watched as her nephew performed one of the most sacred duties of a Grim Reaper.

The releasing of a human soul.

Even though Natalie could not see what Danny was holding in tenderly in his hands, she somehow knew that her nephew must be holding the baby's soul. After Danny was done, he walked through everyone and out of the room. Natalie, more worried about her nephew than the now dead baby, left quietly. A nurse outside the room inquired the development. Natalie replied and they both went their separate ways. Natalie followed her nephew towards the elevators, which was empty.

"Danny, wait!" His aunt called out. Danny stopped and turned around to face her, annoyance was spread upon his face.

"What?" He asked his aunt darkly.

"Do your parents know what happened to you?" She asked him.

"No."

"Then I will tell them." Natalie said. Danny's green eyes grew wide, glowing with rage.

"Don't." He growled.

"I will." Natalie said, stubbornly. Even though he was, not only the Grim Reaper, but also a half ghost hybrid, Natalie did not back down. "Danny, they need to know."

"No. THEY DON'T!" Danny snapped as he lunged for his aunt. But suddenly, he was somewhere else. He was in the warring state. Bombs blew off as bullets flew through the air. He glared into the redden sky. "Natalie! You better not!" Danny shouted into the sky at his aunt.

It's four in the morning, and Natalie has about three more hours of work. By nine, the Fentons will know what happened to Danny...

Whether Danny wants them to know or not.

* * *

**Ah...Danny isn't going to be too happy ^^**

**Natalie is apart of my family of Danny Phantom OCs. And don't worry, none of them have ghost powers. (Well, one is debatable...but I still don't know what to do with the character and what use to let that person have ghost powers be...) So, none of Natalie's family has ghost powers. Period.**

**I'm sorry if I'm not uploading these fast enough from Deviantart.**

**P.S. You're gonna hate me for the next chapter. **

**Especailly you, Danny.**

**Danny: ... Huh? **


	11. A Flicker of Death

A phone rang in the Fenton household. Jazz rushed to it, hoping that it'll be someone that actually HAS information about her missing brother. She picked it up.

"Hello?" Jazz said into the phone. "Who is this?"

"Hey, Jazz." Said a woman's voice. "This is your Aunt Natalie. Is your mother home?"

"Yes, she's home."

"Can you please put her on?" Natalie asked. Jazz politely covered the speaker, shouting for her mother. Moments later, Jack and Maddie came rushing to their daughter. Maddie snatched the phone away from Jazz, not bothering to ask who it is.

"Hello?" Maddie said into the receiver. Natalie replied and Maddie's hopes were brought down. Her sister was probably going ask how they are and tell her what's happening with her own family. And probably to borrow some money-which is tight due to the search for their missing son. "What is it, Natalie?" Maddie asked, now annoyed at her little sister.

"Maddie..." Natalie took a deep breath, knowing that she's gonna make someone very pissed at her.

"It's about Danny..."

Meanwhile...

Danny was at the edge of a forest, standing over a man's body with a hole blasted through his heart. The hunter was stupid enough to accidently shoot himself in the chest. Danny sighed as he bent down at the dead body. This is the second hunter that he had to release its soul. He grunted once his job was done. As he picked up the Grimm, he felt a dark aura nearby.

"A demon..." Danny whispered to himself. He followed its aura, getting closer to the forest. Danny couldn't help but realize that this aura was slightly different-it was darker...more sinister. He halted when his neck hairs prickled.

And as fast as lightning, a demon lashed out on Danny. Striking a deep wound into Danny's chest...blood sprayed as Danny slipped backwards...

"What about Danny?" Maddie asked, her breath caught in her throat. Maddie's question also caught the attentions of her husband and daughter. Natalie sighed unsure of how to tell Maddie the truth, even though she's been figuring it out ever since she found out about Danny. She was in the living room with her daughter, sitting in their Goodwill loveseat that Natalie brought with her from Manti, Utah. She recalls her childhood fights with her elder sister; how she and Maddie would fight over what's real and what's not...

"Well..." Natalie, unsure. She glanced at Kathy, who was watching Saturday morning cartoons through their DTV antenna box. "Danny's...he's..." She took a deep breath.

"Danny's the Grim Reaper."

"Crud!" Danny shouted. The demon attacked again, and Danny tried to dodge it, but it slashed Danny's cheek. Finally, he was out of the demon's range, and got a good look at it.

This demon looked sort of like a werewolf...except furless. The black skin was stretched over its bones; and almost seemed like its rotting. A long, thin black tail swung back and forth in mild amusement. Danny glared at its long, deadly sharp claws that had some of his blood on it.

"Heh heh heh..." The demon growled out through its teeth. "Time for lunch..." Danny could not suppress the shiver that overtook his body from the demon's voice. He knew that this could be very bad. He remembered what Benedetto had told him about demons; the darker the aura, the more powerful the demon is; and the fact that demon could actually talk isn't a good sign either.

This could be bad... Danny thought as he prepared himself for a fight. But what he didn't know that this fight will be different.

It would be his last...

Maddie opened and closed her mouth several times like a gaping fish. She could feel her husband and daughter's eagerness coming from her back.

"What are you talking about?" Maddie yelled into the receiver at her sister. Jack and Jazz flinched. "Is this some kind of joke?!"

Natalie flinched away from the phone, Maddie's voice coming in loud and clear. Apparently loud enough for Kathy to hear also, for her head turned towards her mother in mild curiosity. Natalie waved her daughter away.

"Maddie...I know we have our differences..."

"Yes, Natalie, we do...but you-telling me-that Danny is the Grim Reaper is not one of them." Jack and Jazz gasped at what Maddie had said back to her sister. Jack shook his head in disbelief at Maddie's little sister, while Jazz began to become curious...

"What are you talking about?"

"I'm talking about your husband's childish stories and his older brother's...antics..." Natalie became spiteful at the insults although she cared more about her husband rather than her brother-in-law; it was still a blow to her-their-name.

"Max was not childish for believing such things!" She roared into the phone. Kathy wisely decided to move to her room. She doesn't want to overhear her mother and her aunt arguing with each other... Her door closed like a whisper. "And as for Vlad, he's gone! We haven't heard from him since the mission he and Jack did to destroy that Disasteriod!"

"And good heavens too." Maddie said. Natalie agreed with her sister...but not completely. Everyone hates Vlad Masters, but she, along with Max, knew that Vlad was somewhat a caring person deep down inside. "Frankly, the craziness doesn't fall far from the Masters' tree." Maddie told her sister, something that Mrs. Manson used on her when they forbid Danny from getting close to Sam. Natalie was outraged.

"Okay, fine then!" Natalie yelled into the phone, loud enough for Jack and Jazz to hear. "Danny's not the Grim Reaper! There! But I've called to at least tell you-"

Danny was losing against the demon. Skimpily because the demon instantly heals itself when Danny injuries it. Green ghost blood was oozing all over from Danny's wounds. He was slow, weak...and fragile. The demon chuckled as it stroke out at Danny with its deadly claws. It was a direct hit. Danny flew backwards, the Grimm slipped in his grip.

It was a fatal blow...but Danny fought against the overwhelming waves of bitter coldness. He barely stood, using the Grimm for support. Blood was trailing down his sides, darkness threatening to overtake his vision. I can't die. Danny thought to himself as he fought against the heaviness of death. I just can't die now...

The demon walked closer to Danny as he struggled to breathe...to stay here.

"Yummy..." He chuckled to himself as he approached the dying ghost boy. "A little Reaper for lunch..." Danny bit his lip, panting.

"It's not even past nine, you stupid malformed werewolf!" Danny shouted as he attacked again.

But the same thing happened. The demon instantly healed and stabbed Danny with his claws. Right where Danny's heart was. Danny coughed out blood from the wound. The Grimm completely left his hand, falling onto the moist grass. The demon made a swiping motion to free his claws, and Danny fell backwards onto the sweet green grass. He coughed out more blood, trying to breathe.

"-that your son-"

The demon's shadow covered Danny, its aura was suffocating the weakened ghost boy.

Danny took a shallow breath...

"-is alive." Natalie told her sister.

But the breath never came back out...

* * *

**Hating me now? Lol.**

**Yeah, I know that this is too short to be called a chapter, but oh well.**

**This is meant to be a huge cliffhanger...so; Haha! Haha!**

**Again, if you want, you may read ahead on Deviantart for both Grim Reaper Chronicles and The Accident. (My username is the same.) **

**Plus, there's artwork! **

**And a Danny Phantom game if you look under my favorites! ^^**

**Now I should really do my homework now...**

**Kathy: At two o'clock in the morning?! How come you didn't do it eariler?**

**Me: ...Because...I didn't feel like going downstairs in the basement to do some stupid VINE CHARCOAL drawing.**

**Kathy: ... You don't like vine charcoal?**

**Me: Well, for this assignment I definitely don't.**

**Kathy: ... You really need to stop reading fanfictions; ya know? Cuz once you start reading a story, you don't stop till the end.**

**Me: Yeah, I know.**

**Kathy: And so, you're grounded from here.**

**Me: What?! Why!? And how come I'm listening to a twelve year old brat?!**

**Kathy: Because you created me.**

**Me: But that doesn't nessicary mean that I love you...**

**Kathy: ...**

**Me: Because I don't really torture you, now do I?**

**Danny: So its alright to torture me?!**

**Kathy and Me: Heck ya!**


	12. Another Chance and a Threat

Natalie hanged up the phone, pissed at her older sister. Sure, she may not believe in ghosts and her sister doesn't see the dark creatures that lurk in the shadows, but that doesn't mean that she can totally ignore her. She sighed, and glanced at the TV, where Kathy had returned after she heard the phone was slammed on the receiver. Kathy looked at her mother with her father's eyes.

"You saw Danny?" She asked her mother. Natalie only shook her head as she made her way to her bedroom to sleep.

At the Fenton household, Maddie too slammed the phone onto its receiver.

"Of all the nerve!" She said grumbly as she stomped away. Jack followed, trying to calm down his wife. Meanwhile, Jazz went upstairs to her brother's room, the word 'Grim Reaper' still in her mind.

She snuck into her little brother's room and opened Danny's laptop, typed in the password, and got onto his ghost files. There was one file that had caught Jazz's attention a while back...one that had to deal with a ghost with the power over time.

Jazz has a feeling that that ghost knows who and what the Grim Reaper is...

Like that would change the fact that Danny's dying...

The demon stood over Danny's dying body. It licked its lips.

"**Lunchtime**." It growled even though it's not even past nine. It was about to rip off Danny's arm when it suddenly stopped.

The once lush green grass was now brittle and brown. The warmth has disappeared and in exchange was this freezing chill that pierced your lungs when you breathe. Shadows became unnaturally long and the sun was dim. The demon turned around, towards the dark aura, to face this annoying pest.

Rage poured from a figure in tattered black robes that stood quite a ways from the demon. The demon saw the figure's pale face before it pulled the hood over, only revealing the figure's icy blue eyes and an annoyed mouth line. The demon knew the figure was the cause of this...abnormality...going on. It scuffled away from Danny, who was faintly glowing lime green-like a ghost.

"**Do you mind?**" The demon asked the figure. Even though every instinct in the demon is telling him to flee from this man, the demon's stupidity and hunger kept him here. "**I was going to eat lunch!**"

"I'm sorry." Replied the figure. The demon scoffed at the figure's less masculine voice. "But I cannot allow you to eat him."

"**And why the Hell not?**" The demon asked, annoyed. "**What are you doing to do about it?**"

"I will kill you." Replied the man calmly. The demon laughed as it lunged at the figure. With surprisingly speed; the figure dodged the attack as if the demon was moving in slow motion. Then, with his right hand, the figure strikes the demon with blue lightning. The demon laughed as he begun to heal his wounds. The figure wisely backed away from the demon.

"**AH HA HA HA HA HA!**!" The demon roared happily. "**There's no way that you could ever destroy-**"

The demon was going to finish his sentence with 'me'; but faltered as an enormous wave of blue electricity came crashing down upon him. He roared in terrible pain as the lightning destroyed him all at once. The attack was so deadly, so powerful, that it physically left a split in the earth where the demon once stood. Blue sparks continued to fizzle on the figure's hand until they disappeared moments later.

"Like what I just did?" The figure answered the demon's unfinished statement.

"**_Master..._**" An ancient voice called out to the figure. The figure turned towards the dying ghost boy and the Grimm. "**_Master._**.."

"Yes?" The Master of Souls answered.

"**_Boy...is dying.._**." Called the wispy voice.

Pft. The Master of Souls knows that much. He strolled closer to the boy. The Grimm began to change its shape, but he held out its hand.

"_Don't_." The figure commanded to the Grimm. His normal voice had completely vanished, and in its place was a voice that radiated with dark energy. "_You will stay with the boy until I personally come and get you myself._"

"**_Why?"_**Asked the Grimm.

"_Do you question your Master_?" The Grim Reaper asked. The Grimm fell silent. The Reaper turned back to Danny, who was almost dead. He continued to watch the ghost boy while he asked the Grimm something in his normal voice. "_May I?"_

The Grimm knows what his master is asking, and knows that what he was about to do would be breaking the laws that the Grimm himself created thousands of years ago. The question is: does the Grimm want the ghost boy to be its new Master; or his current idiotic, law-breaking, trouble-magnet one?

"**_Yes_**." The Grimm answered, choosing the dead over the living.

The Master of Souls breathed a sigh of relief as he bends down toward Danny and placed one of his icy hands on Danny's chest.

"Heal." The Master of Souls commanded himself. Instantly, blue sparks came out of his hand, and traveled all over Danny. They flew into Danny's wounds and began to heal them from the inside out. The sparks even stitched up Danny's clothing. As the sparks did their work, the glow around Danny's body became fainter and fainter. Suddenly, air came out of the ghost boy's mouth and his green eyes flew open, wide-eyed at the Reaper. He was about to flee when the Reaper commanded Danny to stay still. The sparks were finishing patching up Danny. Danny's mind couldn't process what is happening.

Isn't the Grim Reaper's job is to let the living die, not to help them live? Danny thought to himself as he and the Master of Souls watched the last of the sparks fizzled out. The Reaper moved out of Danny's way, who hopped up once his wounds were completely healed. He felt absolutely great.

"Um... Thank-" Danny began to say, but the Master of Souls was already gone. The Grimm was still in the tall, lush green grass. Danny picked the scythe up, annoyed. "He could've stayed for my thanks..." Danny grumbled to himself.

"**_Master..."_**The Grimm said. And like how the Grim Reaper cannot be seen or heard by the living, Danny could not hear what the Grimm had just whispered...

Clockwork was preparing for visitors, cleaning up his table where he often has tea. There are going to be two visits today. One was an old friend while the other visit would have three teenagers questioning him. He was carrying a tray of teacups when a voice angrily boomed into his home.

"_CLOCKWORK!_!" The voice threatened. Clockwork sighed, knowing that this visitor won't be calm enough to have tea... The Master of Souls strolled into the Great Room. "Clockwork!"

"Yes? What is it?" Clockwork answered, a little irritated. It's not often that Clockwork gets yelled at…well, other than the Observants of course. The Master of Souls came closer to the Master of Time, the shadows on the walls trailed after him like lost puppies. "Oh. You're upset." Clockwork couldn't help to add, a little amused by the Reaper's emotions.

"Yes, I'm upset." The Master of Souls agreed to his friend. "I'm very upset." The shadows seemed to crawl onto Clockwork, but he ignored the extra coldness.

"But why? You know as well as I that every person dies someday."

"But why didn't you warn me that Danny was being attacked by a demon?!"

"Again, you know as well as I that neither of us can predict deaths caused by demons."

"But you were the one that predicted that Danny would die first, then me." Clockwork sighed at the Reaper's statement.

"You're still on that?" Clockwork asked as he put down the teacups. He poured some tea into two of them. "Why don't you sit down and have some tea with me? We can chat it out then." He said, holding out some tea. The Master of Souls glared.

"I'll not going to Have Some Of That BLASTED TEA!" The Grim Reaper's voice roared as he swiped the tea cup away from him. Tea spattered everywhere as the cup broke against the tiled flooring. The Time TV sputtered on the image of Danny in Egypt. Clockwork glanced at it and then sighed.

"You do know that tea cup that you just broke belonged to Queen Elizabeth." Clockwork said coldly.

"Clockwork, I really don't see the point of this." The Reaper continued, ignoring the Master of Time. "Danny doesn't deserve to be sucked into my mess." Suddenly, Clockwork laughed. The Master of Souls faltered; it's rare for the Master of Time to outright laugh at something as serious as this. "What?" The Reaper asked, irritated yet confused by Clockwork's sudden burst of laughter.

"We're all sucked into your mess..." Clockwork giggled out.

"But Danny-"

"Danny is no different from you." Clockwork said, suddenly stern. The Reaper raised his eyebrows at the Master of Time, who then sighed. "Okay, Danny's A LOT different from you and vice versa. But what I'm saying this that this is for the best."

"Yeah, Danny basically being my apprentice is totally a great idea." The Reaper said sarcastically. Clockwork frowned at the Reaper, then a look of content stretched onto his blue face. The Reaper shivered. He hates it when Clockwork has that face showing.

"Oh, my dear old friend." Clockwork began, pleasure was plastered on his face. "Don't you remember what I've been telling you these past twenty years?" The Reaper knows what the Master of Time was about to say...and its absolutely the most annoying statement that the Reaper will forever be haunted by...

"Everything happens for a purpose."

The Reaper knows that he's been beaten, and that didn't help his anger.

"Fine." He growled, turning away from the Master of Time, his tattered robe fluttering. "But just so that you'll know... If Danny dies-" The Reaper suddenly disappeared. Clockwork rolled his eyes. He has already seen the Reaper leaving like this but continued to talk through the air like an invisible ghost from the Time TV. You know, like one of those villains that had left the building, but continued to talk nether less?

But, for once, things didn't go that way; for Clockwork felt an icy cold hand grab his throat and another hand appeared just barely from his line of sight, blue electricity shaped itself into a misshaped dagger pointing to his throat.

"-it'll all be your fault." The Grim Reaper finished with a demonic tone in his voice. A moment later, the Reaper vanished from the Ghost Zone. Clockwork, the clock in his chest was ticking a little bit too fast, chuckled. He was enjoying this game with the Master of Souls.

"So be it." Clockwork said. "I will take full responsibility-" He glanced at the screen that showed Danny in a river.

"-for your nephew's death."

* * *

**Creepy much?**

**Oh, and get ready for a lot of chapters to be thrown in. It's because I'm stuck on a chapter because no one is asking questions (which I really need so that I can begin the next chapter after that one and finish the story).**

**Or...if you want, you** **could go to my Deviantart page (DB-KT) and there will be a folder called: Grim Reaper Chronicles: Danny Phantom. And there's also pictures if you scroll to the bottom of my gallery and click on GRC: Extras. There's also little one-shots about the Grim Reaper himself! Oh, and doing these would be a huge spoiler alert of course. :)**


	13. Given Up on Hope

Danny hasn't had contact with anyone for two weeks. He sighed as he walked the crowded streets of London, waiting for another person's death. He looked up at a granite statue that was on a pedestal.

There he was, in all his glory. Danny remembered it like it was just yesterday. Saving the world, with his friends and family by his side. That's how Tucker became Mayor of Amity Park. And that's how Danny and Sam became a couple...with that one kiss... His eyes began to water.

"I wish everything was back to normal..." He and another person said at the same time. Danny turned to see who it was.

It was Sam.

Gothic, rebellious, smart, pretty...Danny could go on forever...Sam.

Sam...

And she was standing beside him.

Danny stared at Sam as how Tucker would be staring at a brand-new PDA. She still wore her same outfit except that she was now wearing a black hoodie with his emblem on it over her usual tank top. Danny's ring is still on her ring finger. He noticed some changes that had happened to Sam. She seemed more..._lost_. Even though her face was a mask of plain bleakness; he felt her sadness and sorrow cling to her as if it was an octopus trapping her with its tentacles. His disappearance was physically and mentally inflicting pain onto her. Then he realized her eyes.

How her purple eyes seemed so lifeless-almost like a zombie. Her eyes had become a dark hole of suffocating hopelessness. He stood still, watching her breathe, the way her hair moved as a breeze blew past. She was staring so listlessness at his statue; and he could tell that she was lost in memories. He was about to say her name when Sam turned away and muttered something.

"'I would've had it made out of recyclable materials,'" Sam quoted from that afternoon from long ago. "'but that's just me.'" She crossed the street. Danny had two choices; either he follows her or he doesn't.

He chooses the first choice.

They walked for about twenty minutes. Danny followed Sam like a little lost boy. But after a few minutes, Danny began to get uneasy. It's odd not to feel the tugging that came with a promise of death after more than five minutes... Of course, this had happened before, when he was in Rome and was busy tracking that demented troll demon. But all he's doing right now is following Sam, and that has nothing to do with his job. Unless...something is gonna happen...

Like Sam's gonna die.

Danny suddenly stopped in his tracks, frozen by that thought. There's just no way that Sam is going to die. Danny told himself this. Sam isn't going to die. She isn't going to die. She won't. She won't, she won't, she won't, she won'tshewon'tshewon'tshewon'tshe- Danny was too busy chanting to himself that he almost missed the store that Sam had just entered. He shook his head. If Sam is going die, then he'll do something about it, until then he'll just have to follow her. He looked up at the store's sign.

'Deathly Good Books' the sign said in faint silver cursive writing on the black wooden background. The limestone bricks outside of the store were depressing to look at, little cracks spreading like lightning. There's a heavy oak door and a thin window that was covered up by advertisements that sealed the darkness inside. For some odd reason, it reminded Danny of one of those stores in Diagon Alley from the only movie of Harry Potter that he had watched. Danny suppressed a shiver as he went through the door.

The inside was even more depressing. What light the store had come from three dim lamps-one in each corner except by the door. Almost every single shelf had an inch of dust, filled to the brim with a variety of books. The books had an ancient and rustic look about them. Plaster was slowly peeling away from the walls; cob webs hung from the ceiling almost like drapes. Danny could tell that hardly anyone comes and goes in here.

"Back there." A mellowed voice said. Danny turned to his right. Behind a lame counter (that appeared to look like it was made out of cardboard boxes) with a very ancient looking cash register; there was-what must be-the store's owner, pointing down an aisle that Sam's eyes followed. The man (like his store) had a depressing look about him. His long black hair was greasy and dull, shielding his eyes from the outside world. His loose clothes were gray and also dull. This man reminded Danny of a vampire; heck, he reminded Danny of_ Vlad. _

"Thank you." Sam replied. She began to turn down the aisle but the man touched her shoulder gently. But Sam still flinched at his touch.

"Don't forget this." The man said, handing her a lit lantern out of nowhere. It smelled of keno some.

"Um...thanks." Sam said, a little surprised. She took the lantern and dolefully turned down the aisle. Danny followed her.

"I hope you'll find something you'll like!" The owner yelled to Sam. Then, in a quieter tone. "I also hope you'll find something entertaining to read, white hair..." Danny froze, knowing that the owner could see him. He spun around to make a remark.

But the man was gone.

Danny stood there for a while longer, and then went by to Sam's side, an uneasy feeling crawling up his spine.

As Sam wondered down the aisle, she let her fingertips trail across the books' spines, leaving a clean streak along the books' dusty spines. Obviously, this store doesn't get a lot of customers, for the books were dustier than the shelves; and Danny doesn't blame them due to the creepy owner. Sam constantly mumbled the book titles' names while leaving the trail, tasting the words. Sam suddenly halted in the middle of the aisle, causing Danny to pass through her. She shivered as she pulled out a book called 'A Sad Story of A Sad Ghost'. Danny looked at Sam and back again. The book sounds like a child's book. Sam opened the book and began to read by the glow of the kerosene light.

For the next two hours, Sam was shifting from book to book, staying in the topic of ghosts. Once in a while, Danny would check to see if the creepy owner was back, but all he saw was only the cruddy counter with a bleak poster hanging limply in the front. Once the book called 'Ghosts 101' was placed back in the shelf, Sam strolled down the aisle to the end of the store. She went around a corner and continued to walk until something caught her eyes. She carefully grabbed the book and pulled it out of its place. She blew onto the book's cover, revealing the title.

'A Grim Reaper's Tale' it said. Danny looked at book in curiosity. Did the author know the truth about Grim Reapers? Danny thought to himself. He didn't want Sam to read it, but he could not stop her as she opened the dark book.

They read for about ten minutes before Sam slammed the seventy year old book shut. She was annoyed and disguised by the book's nudity. She quickly shoved the book back onto the shelf, sticking her tongue at it. Danny was both relieved and horrid once Sam replaced the book. Relieved, because she isn't continuing to read it. Horrid, because of the book's maturity. It was definitely written by a very, very lonely man.

Sam returned to the front, and to Danny's surprise, the owner was sitting there, writing something in an old-fashioned book with a feather drip pen. He looked up as the light from Sam's lantern sprayed on his face.

"Ah, had a good read?" The man guessed.

"Um...sure." Sam replied, her mind probably still thinking about that horrid book. She handed back the lantern to the bookkeeper. He noticed her face.

"Something intrigues you." The man said eerily. "What is it?" Sam was unsure how to put this...

"Do you know anything about the Grim Reaper?" Sam asked the bookkeeper. Danny felt uneasy about this new topic; now wishing that Sam was still reading about the childish ghost story. The man smiled coyly.

"Ah...into Grim Reapers now, aren't we?" He asked. Danny noticed the plural on 'Grim Reaper'; Sam, however, did not. "Well, there's a very good book back where you were called 'A Grim Reaper's Tale'. Might I add that it's a wonderful book?" Sam and Danny did not hide their looks of disgust. The man chuckled. "I was just messin'. That book was written purely by the disgusting imagination of a very lonely man."

Yeah, no kidding.

"So do you have any other books about the Grim Reaper? Something like 'Grim Reaper 101' or something basic like that?" The man laughed at Sam's question.

"Do you really think that people would go and buy that?" He asked her. She understood his point.

"Okay then, what do YOU know about the Grim Reaper?" She asked him. The man's face went blank.

"You want my opinion?" He asked. Sam nodded her head. "Hmm..." The man said, suddenly his icy blue eyes appeared from behind the curtain of his greasy black hair, resting them on Danny; who could not repressed the shiver he felt. "I believe...that the Grim Reaper...is the poor bastard that somehow got himself into this mess..." Sam was confused by what he had just said.

"What do you mean by 'this mess'?" She asked him. The man's eyes flew to Sam, who also shivered.

"The mess that comes after the death of the living..." The man said with a screwy crazed sneer. Sam has just realized how nuts the owner was and backed away towards the door.

"Well...um...thanks for letting me read your books..." Sam said as she walked out. The man's smile disappeared as he raised one of his hands.

"Thanks for coming in!" He called out to the teenager. "Come back any time!" She won't be. Danny stayed behind, wanting a word or two with this creepy bookstore owner. "You better get going too." The man said to Danny with a knowing grin. "Before 'duty' calls." Then, without another thought, Danny too left the store and trotted after Sam, keen to get far away from that creepy man and his creepy bookstore.

The man strolled up to the door and flipped the sign to 'closed'. His friend isn't going to be happy if he gets wind of him closing the store early. Like it matters, no one ever comes in here anyways. He watched as Samantha Manson and Daniel 'Phantom' Fenton walked away. He smiled to himself, but he felt uneasy.

I should've grabbed the Grimm. He told himself that. I should've grabbed the Grimm so that Danny could go back to being normal... Well, HIS kind of normal. The man corrected himself.

If anyone else was in the store, they would've realized how abruptly the tempture dropped to freezing point. The dimmed lights went black and shadows crawled towards the owner-who really isn't the owner now is he? He looked up at the cob-webbed ceiling, his facial features changing and his hair shrinking. Tattered pieces of black fabric appeared at the man's shoulders and began to cascade towards the oak wood flooring.

"I still don't like this idea of yours, Clockwork." The Master of Souls whispered to the stilled air before vanishing from the deserted bookstore.

* * *

It's been four hours since Danny had released a soul. He continued to follow Sam where ever she went. After spending a little over two hours in a large-chain bookstore, Sam left and returned to 'Deathly Good Books'. Danny felt relief when he saw the 'closed' sign showing, but he began to worry when Sam began to inspect the narrow window besides the door. She could easily fit through it once the window was broken; and she had enough money to bribe the owner to not sue her. But after a couple of minutes, Sam strolled away. Danny glanced at the bookstore one last time before he trailed after his girlfriend.

Sam then spent the next hour or so wondering the streets of London. As Sam explored, Danny explained everything to her. And he really did tell her everything. Even stuff that she didn't knew that he was there. He didn't care that she couldn't hear him; he just wanted to tell her. The only thing that Danny refused to talk about was the details about each death. Something's are better left unsaid. Once Danny stopped talking, he realized that it was darker.

The once sunny sky was now gray and gloomy.

It was almost six when Sam entered a restaurant. The waitress had no choice but to seat Sam at a bar stool table set for two. Sam climbed up the bar stool to sit while Danny sat in the other. Danny paused.

Wait... Danny began to think. Since when could I sit? He asked himself. But once he felt the nice seat cushion, he relaxed, enjoying this little bit of happiness. Sam looked at the menu as Danny sat there, watching her. The waitress came back and Sam ordered a tofu salad with a glass of water.

Danny suddenly realized how hungry he was. He hasn't eaten anything for over a month! The aroma of freshly baked bread reached Danny's nostrils. Danny could almost taste the fried herb fish on the greens in his mouth. Heck, even a glass of tap water would be heaven for Danny. The waitress appeared, placing Sam's order in front of her and left to attend to other customers. Danny watched Sam as she ate her salad. He was hungry enough to even eat tofu! Oh, wait... Danny changed his mind and almost gagged.

He had just remembered how much he hates tofu.

Sam had just finished eating when it began to rain. Both teenagers stared as the rain came falling down. For some odd reason, Danny recalled a memory from when he was little...

When Danny was a little over seven, he asked his aunt Natalie why it rains. She told him that their relatives in heaven are crying-for she believes in such things. He then asked her why they were crying. Natalie had that faraway look. A look that said she was lost in memories. And she told him that they cry because they are happy for them...and that they wish they could there with them. Danny asked her if Uncle Max was the one crying today. Natalie only gave the seven-year-old boy a sad smile and rubbed his spikey raven hair.

Danny took that as a yes.

Danny noticed that Sam was messing with the ring he gave her after the whole Disasteriod thing. She was twirling it around her finger, pondering about something. For some odd reason, it was bothering Danny...as if she was holding a fragile piece of chinaware and if she drops it, it'll break easily. Like she was judging whether or not to give Danny the death sentence. Danny said her name her, but she couldn't hear him. He should know that by now.

The waitress returned and Sam decided to order tofu ice cream. Danny leaned the Grimm against his chair so that he could cross his arms on the table and set his head down, keen to not watch Sam eat more tofu. Don't get Danny wrong, he's proud of Sam being an Ultra-Recyclo-Vegetarian; but there's absolutely no way that Danny can pull it off...especially Tucker.

Soon, Sam's dessert was finished and she resumed messing with the ring. Danny still had his head down; actually beginning to doze off (he also hasn't slept for the past month) until something startled him alert.

It was the sound of metal hitting hard plastic.

Danny's head shot up. Sam was getting up from her chair. Leaving the ring on the table.

"Sam?" Danny said, confused and hurt at the same time. Her boots touched the floor and began to walk away from the table.

From the ring that Danny gave her on that sunny afternoon.

Away from Danny.

"Wait!" Danny cried out. He slipped off the table, crashing onto the bright red and white tiled floor. "Sam!" He shouted, hoping that she'll hear. She paused by the door, her hands reached for her white hood. Danny ran to her, going through everyone and everything in the process. The Grimm was still leaning against his chair. "Sam! Don't Go!" He screamed at her as he touched her shoulder.

Sam shuddered as she pushed through the restaurant's doors, her hood covering her short jet-black hair. Danny stood still, people passing through him.

He felt hallowed inside. As if the world was suddenly plunged into a black and white silent movie. Sam was the one thing that had helped Danny push through his situation as a Grim Reaper; being forced to wonder through the world of the dead. He saw her as his light at the end of a very dark tunnel; his only map that led home.

Sam has lost hope in finding Danny.

His light has vanished.

And Danny began to wail.

His heart bled onto the floor, and flooded the world. That's how Danny pictured his pain when he realized that Sam has given up on him. People were glancing above him as if the air conditioning was malfunctioning, shivering as Danny cried. The ring was in the forefront his mind as he numbly returned to the table. If he could somehow get the ring and give it back to Sam; then maybe everything can go back to normal, but he doubted that. Misery overwhelmed the ghost boy as he sat dismally on his chair. Still crying like a baby, Danny laid his head against table and continued to grieve, trying to grab the ring that was dear to him.

So this is must it feels like... Danny could not help but thought as he wailed. This is how it feels like...

To die.

Of course, being the Grim Reaper, no one could hear the ghost teen cry over his love.

Well...except for one.

The Grimm was still leaning against Danny's chair. And he heard the teen's heart broke into pieces. He saw the love he has for the girl pour from his very soul, along with tears that pass through the table and onto the floor. His grief and sorrow racked the Grimm's essence. It was starting to tear the Grimm apart.

The Grimm tried ignored the crying ghost teen. He has seen millions upon millions of heart breaks. And they were all the same. Tears, love, and death. It's not necessary in that order, but either way those three things are constant. There's always love. There are always tears; whether it would be happy, sad, scared, or mad. And then, there will always be death. Well, there is certainly love between the two teens. And both have had their tears flow. But neither of them is dead, so why is he making such a big deal about it?

Because it reminds him of his current idiotic Master when he was young (well, he'll always be young due to the fact that he's dead). The memory shifty came to the Grimm as if a bird flew past.

His Master and his loved one were both crying, knowing that he's now dead. For the past year, they've slowly bonded. They didn't do anything too rash since they were only Juniors in high school. But still, their love was apparent. A person has died, and his Master had to leave. But his Master fought against his responsibility as he clung to his loved one-who could see him very well. It was a beautiful sunny morning, and yet it rained with the tears from both the living and the dead...

Then another memory came up, this time his Master had broken a law that the Grimm had laid down thousands of years ago. The Grimm was not merciless. His Master argued with him. Telling him that rules and laws are meant to be broken. The Grimm told his Master that rules and laws are made for a reason and that they should never be broken. His Master smiled sadly but coyly. His Master told him that sometimes laws and rules_ should_ be broken...

But only for the right reasons.

And the Grimm believes that this must be one of those right reasons.

* * *

**Line split means that this used to be two chapters, but decided to load it onto here as one.**

**Sam has gave up on finding Danny... What should Danny do now?**


	14. His Light

Danny was still sobbing on the table, still trying to grab the ring. He didn't care if people died anymore. He didn't care about anything anymore. He has failed Sam, and broke her heart forever.

All he really wanted to do right now, is die also.

He's so dang tired of being around death. Of living through death. Of everything in general.

And Sam was the light that was supposed to lead him home. To lead him back into the world…

The world of the living…

Danny felt numb as he continued to cry and tried to grab the ring. An odd tingling feeling traveled down his spine and spread out throughout his entire body. It vanished after a few more moments of prickling.

He knows this feeling; and he absolutely loathes it.

It's the feeling that something has changed. And he has no control over it.

Danny exhaled; his ribs collided with the table's edge, clutching a frigid piece of circular metal in his right hand.

Slightly confounded; he peeks from his shoulders, with only the mildest bit of curiosity that emerged from his gloom.

He held the ring in his hand.

But that wasn't the only thing that was different; as Danny soon realized.

Instead of the Reaper attire that he has (somewhat) grew fondly of; he was wearing the same clothing that he would wear every day at home. A white short-sleeved tee with a red: collar, sleeves, and an oval over his chest. His red and white casual sneakers were once again on his teenage feet. Baby blue jeans were held tight with his brown belt. Black bangs edged into his vision.

He was in his human form.

And he was solid.

"Wha-?" Danny croaked out from his constricted throat. He didn't-couldn't-understand what was has happened. Why was he solid? And in his human form?

It was then, that he felt something foreign on his left wrist. Confused, he glanced down in renewed interest.

It was a watch.

The band itself was a slate color (the same color as the Grimm's staff). The dial was lime green. Even though the dial had no numbers to tell the time, it had a single hand in the shape of a classic sickle. Danny felt the same dark energy pulse from it as the Grimm. He opened his mouth in disbelief.

"**_Hurry.._**." Said a deep voice that seemed to come from inside of Danny's body. At first, Danny thought it was the Grim Reaper again, but it couldn't be. This voice was different. It was ancient and raw... And it was very powerful. "**_Find the girl.._**." It told Danny. "**_Before...it is too late._**.."

"Girl?" Danny asked aloud, staring at the watch-Grimm-whatever it was. "What gir-"

He stuttered to a stop as he realized who the Grimm was implying.

Sam…

Without a second thought, Danny bolted; with the ring in his hand.

He decided to play on the 'norm' and didn't use his ghost powers as he left the restaurant. As he crashed through the restaurant, knocking into just about everyone and everything; apologizing as he rushed past.

It's been too long since I was normal. Danny thought to himself as he repeatedly apologized to the fellow diners. People yelled at him for running, and began to mutter as he passed by. Eyes landed on him as if he was a wanted criminal as he made his way towards the front doors. He could've gone invisible, but after being invisible to 99.999999999% of the human population; Danny just wants to be seen for once, to be solid again.

Even if it means someone finds him.

He pushed through the retro doors, enjoying the feeling of pushing against something solid again, and dashed out into the chilly pouring rain.

He ran off where he last saw Sam heading, enjoying every second of this small miracle he was given. He loved the way how the rain covered and drenched his body, making his white design tee cling to his chest. How his raven black wet hair is now plastered onto his head, making it hard for Danny to see. The sound of the wet plastic soles of his shoes slapping against the soaked pavement was music to his ears. The rush of air that entered his lungs greeted him like an old friend as he pounded on his way to find his light at the end of the tunnel. He turned his head towards the store windows as he ran by; an enormous grin eating away his face as his sky blue eyes shone through his raven hair.

He skidded to a stop on the sixth corner away from the restaurant, panting as he glanced this way and that for his light. The ring was still clenched in his right hand, the Grimm on his left wrist. He put the ring into his right pocket as he sprinted to each corner quickly glancing up and down the streets. He returned to where he first stopped. He paused, panic starting to flutter in his chest.

He was going to lose his light again.

"**_Track her.._**." The Grimm boomed into Danny. "**_Track her...like how you would...for a demon.._**."

Yeah, cuz Sam is totally a demon. Danny thought to himself sarcastically. He wasn't sure if he should listen to the Grimm's advice; but seeing that he there were no other suggestions, he took the chance.

Danny released his senses, relaxing himself. As usual, auras from all around the area came to him. A corner of his mouth twitched, glad that he's been training his senses, as he searched for something that would lead him to Sam. There were dark auras-which were demons-and there were some that seemed to be...pure? He guessed, but right now, he didn't care for those as he pushed through them. He's only looking for one thing...

Sam's love for him.

A sudden flash of boots on wet sidewalk slammed into Danny's mind. Before the image even had a chance to disappear; Danny grabbed it, and held it tight. White hood over raven black hair... Gloomy purple eyes staring right in front...

Of a luxurious hotel.

Danny smiled, glad that he had decided to listen to the Grimm. He has found her. His eyes opened, full of determination. He ran up one more block and turned right, running for three more blocks before he spotted her. His sneakers slid into a halt as Danny locked his eyes onto the person that was so dear to him.

Sam…

She was slowly, almost painfully, climbing the stairs to a very luxurious hotel that the Madsons must be staying at. The awning from the hotel diverted the rain away from Sam's figure. Danny was directly across the street from her, under the pouring rain. Oddly enough, there were no cars driving by, no pesdriatians out and about. In other words…

They were all alone.

The rain was their only soundtrack for miles.

Now, if only he could say her name...

"Sam." Danny whispered. Of course Sam didn't hear him as she continued to climb the stairs.

"Sam." Danny said, louder. Sam still couldn't hear. The rain was now pounding over the awning from the hotel as Sam neared the door. For some odd reason, there was no doorman. She reached for the door handle.

"Sam!" Danny shouted through the rain. He could tell that Sam slightly hesitated, but grabbed the handle nether less. He took a huge gulp of air before flinging it back out.

"SAM!" Danny yelled as loud as he could muster.

Sam instantly paused. Danny's eyes widen as she turned around; her body stiff, her hand still on the door handle.

Her purple eyes widen; her face in utter disbelief.

Her hand fell limply from the door handle as she took a step away from it...

And a step closer to her love.

"Danny..."

* * *

**You have no idea how much I wanted to leave it off here...**

**Well, on Deviantart I did, but not on here.**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

As Sam walked back to the hotel that her and her parents were staying at, she could not shake the feeling of despair that clung to her like chains. They jiggled as she walked, irritating her to the oblivion. She has been wearing those chains for over a month now.

The chains of depression...

The chains of suicide...were ever getting tighter...ever growing stronger...

Ever since her parents decided to move, Sam has been feeling so depressed lately that it's not even funny. They told her that getting clean air was going to help her feel better.

How wrong they are.

Every day that passes, Sam has become more and more numb. A slip of a knife while cutting carrots doesn't bother Sam anymore. In fact, she enjoys the pain. But after a few more times, the pain too became numb; and that just made her glower in anger. She has become more irritable by each sunrise, as if each new day pained her in way unimaginable. She doesn't want to do anything anymore; all she wants to do is sit and stare up at the ceiling, pondering, wondering. Even the books that she enjoys reading and her favorite hobbies have become dull and lifeless. Those things cannot distract her enough from the chaos that roams in her mind and her soul. She cannot stand seeing people smile, so happy about whatever shit that makes them so joyous.

Sam just wants to disappear...like Danny. She just cannot take this pain anymore. Of not knowing what happened to the love of her life. For once, a boy has loved her in a way that she has loved him as well. He loved her for who she was without acting like a total jerk, like that stupid Gregor guy...

But somewhere, deep down inside of her, she just knows that something terrible has happened to Danny. I mean, he's half _ghost _for Pete's sakes. They would be able to easily track him by his ecto-signature alone. But only she alone knows the truth... There IS a reason why no one can find him...

Because he's dead.

She wants to join him so bad that she would literally throw away her own _life_.

As she climbed the stairs to the hotel, her mind drifts to a realm that she has been toying with lately... She began to ponder...to plan...

...how she would kill herself.

She found it odd that there was no doorman at the door to open it for her. But she didn't mind-or cared. It's just one last person she'll see before she ends her life. She heard something as she reached for the handle, but she ignored it. Only one thought echoed pleasantly through her mind...as if she was dying to watch her favorite TV show and she's so close to watching it.

All of her problems will be gone soon enough.

And she would be able to see him again...

"SAM!"

Sam paused at the doorway. That voice... She thought to himself. It couldn't be. It just couldn't be. She turned to face the voice's owner-which she knew who but had to look to make sure.

It was the voice of her loved one...

Danny's voice...

Sam felt her hand go limp and fell from the door handle. Her eyes were wide and her mouth was partly open in disbelief. She took a step away from the door and closer to her love.

It was _Him..._

_Him_, who's raven black hair was soaking wet.

_Him_, who was panting like a dog, his soaked shirt moved as he breathed.

_Him_, who she had loved for these past few months, not matter what happens.

It was _him_ who loved Sam for who she was-not for her wealth.

But most importantly...

It was _HIM_, who had just saved Sam's life once again.

"Danny..." Sam mumbled his name through her lips.

Sam has finally turned towards Danny. The two teenagers stared at each other, knowing that they have been yearning for the other. They stood, rooted in their spots, both not daring to move in case this was a hoax. The rain continued to downpour on the ghost boy while the awning from the hotel kept the rain at bay for the girl. It was Sam who finally reacted.

"Danny..." She whispered his name. And even though it was pouring rain, Danny heard her say his name as clear as day-as if she was standing right beside him and had whispered into his ear.

"Sam..." Danny said. Sam didn't hear, but could guess by the way his lips moved that he too had said her name.

They stood there, the teens' desire for each other overwhelmed them; breaking their trace.

And then, they rushed at each other.

As if each held the other's life in their hands.

They met in the middle of the street. Sam fell into Danny's outstretched arms that brought her in close to his cold body. Water trailed from both of the teens' faces.

Whether it was rain or tears...it's up to you to decide.

They clung to each other, breathing each other in through their mouths. Sam still smelled like the same dusty books and lavender herbs with a dash of feminine; while Danny's scent hasn't changed from his clean cotton with a hint of manliness hidden just under the surface. Sam's head came closer to Danny's; and then, they too, could taste each other. Sam suppressed the shudders that racked the inside of her body as she kissed long and hard against the ghost boy-her true love. Danny knows that Sam could feel his coldness, but he doesn't care right now...he just wants her-his light-to glow bright once more.

"**_Danny..._**" The Grimm suddenly said, causing Danny to pull back from Sam. Sam realized the sudden movement.

"Danny?" She whined. Danny knows that he's going to have to leave soon. He gently grabbed one of her hands and looked at her amethyst eyes.

"Sam, listen to me and don't ask any questions." Danny told her. Jeez, after he spent an hour or so awkwardly telling her everything, now he has to basically leave a quick note with as many details as possible. Danny sighed, knowing that this isn't going to sit too well with Sam... "Sam...

"I'm the Grim Reaper."

"What?" Sam said in disbelief. Danny knew it. "Danny, you've been gone for over a month-"

"Yes, I know."

"-you must've been captured and-"

"Sam, I wasn't captured or tortured."

"Then why have you disappeared?!" Sam suddenly shouted. Danny flinched. The Grimm chuckled to himself, not letting Danny hear...

"I've told you, I'm the Grim-"

"That doesn't mean anything! If you were the Grim Reaper then we would've found you a long time ago!"

"No, you couldn't."

"Yes, we could've!"

"No. You couldn't because Grim Reapers exist on a different plane from the living!"

"What are you talking about?! Danny, you're losing it..."

"Then, tell me how I knew that you were at my statue today at one in the afternoon?" Danny asked her. Sam was quiet.

"That's because you were invisible."

"Yeah, that's totally why the British Intelligence's ghost tracking equipment went off, finding me besides you." Sam was quiet. "Ah, and let's not forget that creepy bookstore owner who handed you a kerosene lantern to use as a light. And that stupid book called 'A Grim Reaper's Tale'? I had to skip a few paragraphs because you read so fast; but I really don't want to talk about a story that some guy's nasty imagination was out of whack. And oh, at the restaurant; you ordered tofu salad and it started to rain once you were done. Then, for some odd reason, you also had tofu ice cream. Then you suddenly left and I was screaming for you to come back because you left your ring-"

It was then, did Danny pulled out the class ring he had given to Sam all those weeks ago from his jean pocket. Sam's purple eyes went wide in shock as Danny positioned her hands so that the ring could sit in her cupped hands.

"-on the table..." Danny finished as his emotions choked his voice. He couldn't talk anymore; his blue eyes rested on his left wrist, where the Grimm hung. Sam stared numbly at the ring, not believing her eyes. Tears began to well in her eyes.

Danny was here, with her this entire time...

And here she believed with all her soul, that he was dead.

While he, trying with all his might, to make her see...

That he was_ alive._

"Danny..." Sam mumbled softly, still staring at the ring. Danny looked at her, knowing that she had got his point. "I-I'm so...sorry..." Sam sobbed out. Danny held her close to his cold body. Suddenly everything made sense to Sam, as if she had turned on a light in a dark room. "Is...Is this why you're so cold?"

"Yes..." Danny happily answered her right away; glad that her eyes began to glow with life, just like they did back home.

"And-and the shadow creatures?"

"They're called demons... And it's my job to destroy them."

"And the glowing dead people?" Sam asked. Danny couldn't look at her, and glanced up into the gray sky. Rain dived lightly into his sky blue eyes.

"They glow because their souls are ready to move onward... And it's my job as the Grim Reaper to release the souls from their bodies...to help them move...to a better place..." Danny answered in a whisper-like voice. He felt the tugging and knew that his time is up. He carefully pushes Sam away from him, but still only a breath's length away. "I have to go..." He told her.

Sam looked up at Danny. She doesn't want him to go...not after she had just found him! But she has seen the look of determination in his eyes, how his shoulders seemed to carry the weight of responsibility, the way he held her as if he could protect her from everything and anything...

A young hero stood proudly in front of her, waiting for her answer-her permission-to move into action.

And she knew that she must let him go...

"Okay..." Sam said, still sad.

Danny noticed how depressed Sam is; but how can he make it up to her? A thought popped up into his head that made him smile. And then he said something that made the Grimm froze.

"I promise I will never leave you." Danny softly said with a voice of certainty and serenity. That made Sam's face glow with hope; her light began to blind him from the end of the tunnel...

_**Oh dear me...**_ The Grimm could not help but think to himself. _**They really ARE related... **_He meant Danny and his Master.

Sam nodded her head. Danny gave her one last peck on the cheek. "I'll see you home soon, Sam."

"Home?"

"Yes, home." Danny told her. And before Sam could say-or do-anything else, Danny disappeared from her grasps.

No longer apart of her world once again.

But Danny didn't mind as he reappeared several thousand miles away.

For he could still his light at the end of the tunnel…

* * *

**Love it, hate it?**

**Gotta admit; this was one of those chapters that I was absolutely enjoyed to write about. ^^**

**WARNING: next chapter is gonna be a filler one. Just to tell ya. **


	15. A Conversation of Sorts

Danny has been very busy lately. It didn't help the fact that a civil unrest was occurring in a couple countries... Either way, Danny was now looking forward to becoming normal again, cuz he's now gonna ace his world current events summaries. Lancer is going to be shocked.

Although Danny has been busy, his adventure in London with Sam still hung in his mind. The creepy bookstore owner that could see him... Sam leaving the ring... Their kiss in the down pouring rain... Ooooo. How Danny has missed Sam's kisses. And it was thanks to the Grimm that had allowed Danny to return the ring to Sam. Danny didn't even realize that the Grimm was actually a person until he heard it telling him to find Sam. The Grimm had given Danny a chance to let Sam confront him, which saved Sam's life.

But of course Danny didn't know that part...

Danny appeared at an airport in New York City. A man had a stroke. Danny released the old man's soul just as the paramedics were loading him up into the ambulance. Sometimes, Danny wished that people could at least _hear _him. That way, they don't have to waste their time trying to save someone who's already dead. He was just about to leave the airport when he caught a glimpse of a purple backpack.

Wait; make that a fuzzy purple_ spider_ backpack. The spider's legs swayed as Sam walked towards her parents. Danny watched her and her family as they waited for around for another flight. Danny decided to stroll up to them and took a peek at their flight tickets.

One way.

To Amity Park.

* * *

A knock.

Jazz hurriedly opened it.

"Sam!" Jazz exclaimed happily as she gave Sam a bear hug. For once, Sam didn't protest. Heck, she even returned the favor. It felt good to be happy again. "It's been so long! How was London?" Sam had that faraway look on her.

"Life changing." Sam finally replied. "Say, is Tucker here?"

* * *

The teens waited several more hours before Tucker could finally come. They met in Danny's room, on his rug. By the time Tucker finally showed up, Valerie had also joined the group.

"Sorry I'm late." Tucker said, holding a bag of food from Nasty Burger. "I had important things to do."

"I hope it wasn't trying out Nasty Burger's new bean burgers." Valerie said, teasingly waving her hand as if something smelled.

"Maybe I was." Tucker said. Jazz pulled out Danny's laptop out of her bag, along with some Febreeze.

"Okay guys, I know it's been almost two months since we've last seen Danny, but we know have at least some clue to what happened to him." Jazz said as she fired up the laptop.

"You've found a clue?" Echoed the freshmen. The group of teens wasn't able to meet up often because of what had happened.

"About a couple of weeks ago, my aunt Natalie called from Omaha." Jazz said. She was clicking away, the screen towards her. Once she stopped clicking, she turned the laptop around so that the others could see. She had the internet up and running along with Microsoft Word. There were several tabs; the one they were on was a world map with a red flag where Amity Park was and a blue flag where Omaha was. "Apparently, she saw Danny at the hospital." Tucker and Valerie gasped, already assuming the worst. Sam felt uneasy about this and read the other tabs.

The other tabs were all about Grim Reapers.

"What was Danny doing in the hospital?" Valerie asked. Tucker looked like he was about to faint from just hearing the word 'hospital'.

"Well...that's the thing..." Jazz began, unsure how to break this out to the others. "My aunt believes that, somehow, Danny's-"

"The Grim Reaper." Sam finished for Jazz. Valerie and Tucker exchanged looks while Jazz stares at Sam.

"How did you..."

"Because I saw him too." Sam said, guessing that their aunt could see Danny.

"Just hold up one minute." Tucker said, still shaking his head. "Are you trying to tell that Danny's a Grim Reaper?"

"I'm not trying to tell you, I _am_ telling you." Sam said, a little annoyed at Tucker.

"But Sam, isn't this a little...extreme?" Valerie asked. Sam sighed.

"Look, I don't care if you guys think I'm nuts or something, but I know what I saw; and what I could understand from Danny's quick little job overview, that he's the Grim Reaper now and he's sort of stuck doing this."

The group of teenagers was silent.

"By the way Sam," Jazz began, ignoring Tucker and Valerie. "Where and when did you see Danny?"

"Five days ago, in London." Sam answered. Jazz nodded and placed a green flag in London.

"Do you think we should tell your parents about this?" Valerie asked Jazz. Jazz shook her head.

"They won't believe me. My mom didn't believe her sister when she told her, so why would it be any different if it comes from me?" Jazz told Valerie with a sigh.

"Maybe because you're their daughter?" Valerie said.

"Val, they won't believe her _or_ us." Tucker said. "Heck, they even laughed at us when we asked them if it was possible for a human to have ghost powers; and you know that answer already." While Tucker and Valerie had been talking, Jazz and Sam were talking to each other.

"You guys spoke to Clockwork?" Sam asked, a little surprised.

"Yeah, I'm sorry that we didn't invite you..." Jazz replied.

"Nah, its okay, Jazz." Sam answered quickly.

"What was he doing in London?" Tucker said who was obviously not listening to Jazz and Sam's conversation before he butted in. "Watching the Olympic Opening Ceremony?" Tucker tried to joke. Valerie backhanded him. "Ugh... Remind me to try to convince your father to make you my personal bodyguard." Tucker said while rubbing his cheek.

"I will try not to." Valerie responded.

"Here" Jazz said to Sam, handing her the laptop. Apparently, neither of them was paying attention to Tucker and Valerie. "After my aunt told my mom about Danny being the Grim Reaper, I did some research on Danny's ghost files and found Clockwork." Jazz pulled up a word document about the Grim Reaper.

"For some odd reason, Clockwork totally ignored anything that had to do with Danny." Tucker said, this time he was listening to their conversation before saying something.

"But when we asked him about the Grim Reaper, he totally filled us in." Valerie added in.

"Yeah. But I have a feeling that he still didn't tell us everything about the Grim Reaper." Jazz said. Sam stopped reading.

"Demons?" Sam asked the group.

"In other words, the shadow creatures that Danny saw that day." Tucker said. "Clockwork told us that demons either come from an evil soul or a soul that the Grim Reaper could not release in time."

"In time?"

"Yeah. He said that if a soul was left here long enough that it eventually becomes either a ghost or a demon."

"And how long does that take?" Sam asked. The group of teens shrugged. Sam went back to reading the file before she stopped again. "There are people with 'spiritual' powers?"

"I think Clockwork means shamans or priests." Jazz said quickly. Valerie nodded her head in agreement.

"Can they see the stuff that Danny can see?"

"I think so, why?" Valerie replied. Sam was quiet.

"Well...maybe we can ask one of these 'spiritual' people to help us find Danny." Sam said. Smiles appeared on Jazz and Valerie's faces.

"Of course!" Jazz exclaimed. "It makes sense! Clockwork did say that those people can easily find each other by using some sort of 'bond' thingy. Maybe one of them can easily track down Danny by using that!"

"Sam, you're a genius!" Valerie exclaimed. The only non-cheery person in the room was Tucker.

"Yeah, but don't you remember what Clockwork had told us about those people?" Tucker said. Jazz and Valerie gave Tucker a blank stare. Sam felt her stomach knot; she didn't like how Tucker's voice sounds. "Most of those 'spiritual' people see the Grim Reaper as an enemy...so how are we going to find one that isn't going to tear Danny apart limb from limb?"

The group of teenagers was silent as they pondered what to do next.

* * *

Well Tucker, there are certainly several places where you can find people who are friendly to the Grim Reaper. One of those places is a city called Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Milwaukee is basically a breeding ground for many 'spiritual' people. The problem is that 99% of those people see the Grim Reaper as an enemy and will attack on sight. But the biggest problem will be happening at midnight-when a lady is murdered in an alleyway, and two groups of those people will be nearby...

With Danny in the middle...

* * *

**For now on, I will use lines in between sections of the story (since I cannot seem to use space + enter thingy...?)**

**I apologize for any spelling/grammar mistakes. **

**Also, thanks for the reviews! And the favorites and the follows!**


	16. A Long Night in Milwaukee

Danny appeared in Milwaukee, Wisconsin; standing over a woman that was glowing. Great. Danny thought to himself as he glanced up and down the alley. The place where the craziness started. He meant when Vlad was in the accident which he had gained his ghost powers from.

Danny placed the Grimm away from the dead body. He couldn't help but noticing that something was different this time. He sensed dark energy nearby but he couldn't point it out where it was coming from-which was weird. Lately, he's been getting really good at pinpointing at demon's location, but he couldn't find where this demon was hiding. He shook his head and crouched down, about to pull the lady's soul out of her body when he heard a click.

"Stop right there." Said a voice. Danny froze at the threatening voice. But he shrugged. There's no way they're talking to-"Step away from that body, Reaper Boy." Okay...so they _are_ talking to me. Danny thought as he took a careful step backwards. Apparently Danny wasn't moving fast enough, for a hand roughly grabbed his shoulder and shoved him backwards.

"Stay there, Boy." Said Danny's assaulter. Danny got a good look at the aggressive man from the ground. The man was of African descent. His eyes were a chocolate brown, his black hair was messy. He wore a tan leather woolen jacket with a red buttoned shirt on top of a white muscle tank top. His jeans were worn at the end of each leg, a brown belt hung loosely around his waist. His steel-toed boots were uncomfortably close to Danny's face. A gun was pointing at Danny's face, making one of Danny's eyebrows rise.

"You know a gun wouldn't harm me." Danny said cockily. The man glared at the white-haired Reaper.

"You wanna bet little snot?" He growled, his gun suddenly glowed red-as if being powered up by his spiritual energy. Danny gulped and flashed a grin at the man.

"Teacher..." Said another male voice. The aggressive man turned to face the voice-as did Danny. There was another man of African descent, but younger than the aggressor. He, however, appeared to be very kind and polite. His black hair was chopped and his hazel eyes shone against his skin. He wore a red long-sleeved buttoned shirt with a white designed short-sleeved tee underneath it. His jeans looked the same as the other man's, but were dyed in a darker blue. He too wore steel-toed boots.

"Shut the hell up, Wayne." The aggressive man said to the younger one. The young man-Wayne-obeyed, but flashed Danny a look of sympathy. Danny immediately liked this Wayne dude. "And you stay put, damn Reaper." He growled at Danny, and then he glanced at the dead woman. "I'll be the one moving her onward. Not you." He nearly spit that last part at Danny as he strolled towards the lady. Wayne approached Danny and stood over him, watching Danny as if he were a turtle on his back.

"I'm so sorry about this." Wayne said. "My Teacher-Da'Shawn-is a jerk to everyone, not just you."

"I can tell..." Danny grunted as he got up from the ground. He didn't care if he was going against what the older man said. He was _not_ going to sit on the cold ground as he did Danny's job. Even though Danny is still a newbie at his job, he was worried that this 'Da'Shawn' might screw things up. His neck hair prickled, sensing a demon. Wayne stiffened.

"A demon..." Wayne whispered. He too, glanced around, trying to find its source.

So I wasn't imagining things. Danny thought to himself as inspected their surroundings. There really is a demon around here somewhere.

Da'Shawn was crouched down besides the lady. His shoulders were stiff with tension. His gun-free hand hovered over the woman's body, hesitating. Danny couldn't understand why the man was taking so long. Then, an enormous wave of dark energy flooded his senses. The lady was still faintly glowing, but Danny realized that the glow wasn't that nice golden color. The glow was the color of blood instead of the usual gold. And-it may sound insane-but it felt like...the dark energy was coming from...

The dead woman.

Suddenly, the dark energy became visible as it poured out of the woman's body. Da'Shawn moved his feet backwards so fast that it looked like he almost flew. Wayne's face was full of sheer horror as the darkness continued to pour from the lady's dead body. Dread overwhelmed Danny's senses. What the heck is happening? The thought flashed in Danny's head.

"Wayne..." Da'Shawn began, his gun pointing at the lady's body, red glowing around it. "Reaper..." He added with disgust. "What you are about to see, is how one of these mother fuckers are formed."

The two newbies watched in awe as the darkness began to form itself over the lady's body.

It was pretty nasty really, as the darkness began to form into a demon. A hand along with a long arm shot out of the lady's chest, as if a monster was ripping out of its human cage. It pulled itself out, more darkness clinging to its sides as it takes a more solid form. A long stout of a head busted from the body and shrilled, piercing into the air. Wayne and Danny had to cover their ears from the terrible wail while Da'Shawn's legs barely shook. Now that the demon has its head and two long arms out, it tugged the rest of its body out from the dead carcass. It's back looked ridiculously huge; the legs tiny like a bird's. Once the demon had fully emerged from the dead lady, it shrilled once again, this time louder and longer. It's shrill physically harmed Danny this time as he doubled over, the sound vibrating throughout his being. Da'Shawn aimed his gun at the demon.

"Nighty, nighty, Cock-a-Doodle-Bitch." He grunted as he fired. Danny suspected a bullet to come out of the gun (heck, who wouldn't?), but instead, a ray of pure red spiritual energy blasted from it like an ecto-gun and hit the demon. The demon shrilled in pain as Da'Shawn continued to shoot it. Danny wanted to help, but he didn't felt like butting in. The last thing he needs from this jerk is that he, _himself_, gets blasted by that gun.

The demon collapsed onto itself after six fires. Da'Shawn blew off the excess energy and grinned as he strolled towards the demon. Wayne breathed a sigh of relief.

"That's Da'Shawn for you." He said, talking to Danny. "Always hogging the fights." Danny nodded, but then immediately grimaced as if he ate something bad. Something about this wasn't right. He thought to himself. The demon should've disappeared if it was destroyed... Maybe because he used a gun instead of the Grimm?

Da'Shawn stood over the massive demon. Even though it was just born, it was huge, meaning that the lady's soul was even more rotten than Da'Shawn first thought. He cautiously poked the demon with the barrel of his handgun. He too knew that something isn't right about this. Maybe the demon was exhausted and collapsed upon itself? Either way, he needs to finish it...or...

"Wayne." Da'Shawn said harshly. Instantly Wayne froze, pulling himself taller as if he were a soldier being ordered by his superiors.

"Y-yes?" He asked his teacher. Da'Shawn casually turned towards his pupil.

"Finish this, will you?" He asked, facing his pupil. It that moment, the demon rose. Wayne and Danny's faces paled. Da'Shawn knew that he was in danger and leapt forward. But it was too late for him as the demon grabbed him from one of its arms. Realization lit up Danny's face.

The demon _pretended _to be exhausted... Danny thought to himself as he stared in horror. He-she _planned _this...

"Shit!" Da'Shawn cussed as he aimed at the demon with his gun and fired. The demon roared in pain, but continued to hold Da'Shawn, squeezing Da'Shawn by its talons. Da'Shawn was gasping for breath; the talons bit into his body, drawing out blood. Wayne stood beside Danny, petrified. Danny couldn't stand still any longer. He has to do something to save that jerk's life.

And so, Danny charged at the demon, hefting the glowing Grimm. The demon was too busy watching Da'Shawn wither that she didn't see Danny coming until it was too late. Danny swung the Grimm, green ghost energy bursting out of it and slashed the demon. She roared into the air, her back jerking as if she was having an asthma attack. Danny attacked again, this time, the demon loosened its grip on Da'Shawn; allowing him to breathe normally again.

Just a couple more times... Danny thought as he turned to attack once more. What he saw made his eyes go wide.

The reason why the demon's back was so huge was because they were _wings_. The demon spread out its wings, which passed through the walls. They were easily thirty yards in diameter. The wings beat heavily and the demon hovered a dozen feet or so from the ground. Panic shone through Da'Shawn's eyes.

"Oh, no you don't!" He screamed at the demon, putting all of his energy into his gun for a single powerful blast. Unfortunately, the demon swiped the gun away from Da'Shawn, causing it to fall into an opened manhole. Da'Shawn couldn't believe it...his only weapon was gone...

In the damn sewer of all places!

"You know what?" Da'Shawn yelled at the demon while Danny used this opportunity to sneak up on the demon. "You're a fucking Bitch!" Apparently, the demon knew what Da'Shawn had just called her for she squeezed him tighter. Da'Shawn gasped, all his air being pushed out against his will.

Danny was about to strike at the demon when the demon realized that Danny was there. Quicker than you can say 'Flap Jacks', the demon smacked Danny so hard that he fell to the cold ground, landing awkwardly. Wayne seemed to break his spell and rushed at the Grim Reaper.

"Are you okay?" He asked Danny, who moaned before he got up. Danny looked at Wayne with eyes full of confusion and desperation.

"What are you doing?!" Danny yelled at Wayne, causing Wayne to flinch. "Go stop that demon!" The demon was flying away with Wayne's teacher, who was cussing every single word he knows. Wayne looked up at his teacher, who was getting smaller and farther away with each passing second. Danny couldn't understand why he was staring at the demon, watching it flee with his teacher in its talons. "What are you waiting for? Go_ save_ him!" Wayne looked at Danny, his eyes full of shame.

"I can't..." He whispered so softly. Danny couldn't-and didn't-understand.

"What are you talking about? Yes, you can!" Danny shouted at him. He's too battered to go after the demon now; exhaustion was dragging him down as if he were drowning.

"No, I can't..." Wayne said. This time, he looked away as he finished his sentence. "My spiritual energy...I-I...don't know how to use it..." He said with the utmost truth in his voice. Danny felt numb.

Da'Shawn was gone.

They two teens stayed where they were for a few minutes. Each processing what had just happen...and what will most likely happen.

"I'm useless..." Wayne mumbled to himself. Danny ignored him and tried to come up with a plan, but couldn't. He has no idea how to find Da'Shawn, nor help Wayne. Great. Danny thought to himself. He's a goner; another person that I'll have to released his soul...if he lets me near him that is... There just has to be a way to prevent his death...but how? Danny was so lost in thought that he didn't realize that Wayne had held out his hand to him. Bleakness shone through Wayne's eyes. No confidence, no optimism what-so-ever.

"You're not useless." Danny answered him, causing Wayne to be taken aback. Liar. Danny thought as he reached for Wayne's hand. Wayne didn't do anything in this fight...

Danny thoughts were interrupted when their hands touched, drawing out his ghost powers out. Danny froze as his powers emerged and began to travel onto Wayne's arm; as a faint yellow energy came out of Wayne's hand and crawled onto Danny's arm. The two powers caused no harm to the boys, but both immediately let go with gasps of shock. Their energies disappeared once they broke contract with each other. Danny was absolutely confused of what had just happened.

"What the heck just happened?" He asked Wayne, who was staring at his hand as if he had blood on it. He then slowly looked up at Danny.

"I-I think...we had just made...a _bond_." Wayne said, emphasizing on the word bond. Something churned in Danny's memories, recalling Benedetto saying something about his bond with his so-called Master.

"A bond...?" Danny asked, confused. Wayne slowly nodded his head.

"Yes, a bond..." He said. Then his eyebrows knitted together. "Or...maybe not?" It sounded like he almost suggested that part.

Okay. Danny thought to himself as he watched Wayne continue to observe his own hand. I need answers-_now_.

"Wayne...what's a bond?" Danny asked him, hoping that Wayne can be a better explainer than Benedetto. Wayne sighed, and looked at Danny.

"A bond...is-well... A bond is like a pact, or treaty, to say..." Wayne began. "Except it is more like a GPS/cell phone for...well..._our_ kind."

"'our kind'?" Danny echoed. Wayne nodded.

"Our kind is the people can see demons and souls; and who have spiritual energy to deal with those beings." He continued, staring at his hand once more. "The fact that your power didn't harmed means that we're compatible."

"What?" Danny asked. He did not like the sound of that. Wayne looked at Danny again.

"Did you feel any pain...when my power crawled onto you?"

"No. I didn't feel any pain." Danny replied. Wayne nodded his head.

"It was the same way for me. Since our powers weren't hostile to each other means that we are compatible-in other words-we can form a bond." Danny wasn't too sure whether or not he should 'form' a 'bond' with Wayne. But a couple of things were stuck in Danny's mind.

"You said that the bond is more like a GPS and a cell phone?"

"Yeah. When one forms a bond with another, you're connected with that person _spiritually_." Wayne told him. Danny was about to say something, but he could tell that Wayne wasn't exactly done yet. "That means, you will always know exactly where the person who formed a bond with is from anywhere around the world." Okay...a little creepy there... "Also, you can sort of use it as a form of communication-thus a cell phone. You can actually _talk_ to the other person no matter how far you are away from them. You can also send out distress signals and use other ways to communicate."

Just then, something red glowed on Wayne's inner palm of his left hand, causing Danny to gasp. Wayne looked at it, his face full of fear, distress, and...some kind of relief?

"An example." Wayne said, showing Danny his inner left hand. Danny saw a red mark...like a logo or symbol of some sort, but he couldn't tell due to the fact that it was lightly blinding him. "This is the bond I have with Da'Shawn. Da'Shawn's left hand has the same exact thing." Wayne mumbled as he closed it. He stared blankly at his hand for a few seconds before he looked at Danny for the third time. "The demon's taken him to the warehousing district. We need to get there as fast as we can." He ordered Danny, who nodded and grabbed Wayne.

"Then let's go." Danny said as he took off, flying. But he barely got off the ground when a terrible pain seized his body. He flinched; his body rebelled against his commands, shutting down on him as they fell back to the ground. Wayne almost rolled his ankle as he landed awkwardly on the cement.

"What the Hell was that for?!" He shouted at Danny, his eyes hard on the Ghost Boy; who grimaced in pain. Danny was still recovering from the beating that he took from the demon...

"I'm so _sorry_..." Danny said with the utmost sarcasm. "But I'm still exhausted from that battle." Wayne's eyes went soft. He knew how hard Danny fought while he sat on the sidelines, being useless.

"No, _I'm_ the one who should be sorry." Wayne apologized. He had just busted at the Reaper even though he had fought to save their lives. He had acted just like his teacher-Da'Shawn. Great. Wayne thought to himself as his face palmed himself. He's rubbing off on me. He then helped Danny get up from the hard cement. "Then I guess we're just going have to walk." He said, staring-almost glaring-at Danny's robes.

"What now?" Danny asked, annoyed that Wayne had just acted like his teacher.

"You should probably change your outfit." Wayne said. "Grim Reapers aren't exactly welcomed around here, if you catch my drift. There are people far worse than Da'Shawn here in Milwaukee." After seeing how Da'Shawn treats Danny, he doesn't want to know what could be worse than Da'Shawn. Danny sighed.

"But I don't know how." Danny told Wayne, looking for any suggestions. Wayne shrugged.

"Don't ask me. I'm not the Grim Reaper here, you are." Wayne replied.

God, he really is useless. Danny thought to himself as he closed his eyes. How the heck am I going to change my appearance? It's not like I can just take some clothes and put them on... Then Danny remembered when he was in London with Sam, how the Grimm allowed him to change into a human while it had changed itself into a watch. Danny felt a little unsure of this as he opened his eyes and stared at the Grimm. Better he try than not try at all... He held the Grimm at an arm's length away, as if afraid that the Grimm may attack him.

"Uh..." Danny began, unsure how to word this. "Hey, there Grimm. How are you doing?" Stupid. Danny immediately thought. Stupid, Stupid, STUPID! He shook his head. Okay, restart. "Um...so...Grimm, I was wondering..." Danny scratched his head with his free hand as he glanced around his surroundings. "I was wondering...if you could...like..." He caught a glimpse of Wayne staring at him as if he had just lost his sanity. Danny turned his back at Wayne, already feeling like he was mentally insane. He began to sweat; like when he had to retake his C.A.T.s test because of him almost cheating on his first attempt. He swallowed some air before he continued. "Could you...like...change me...and uh, yourself...into something more-uh...less Grim Reaper-ish?"

Immediately, darkness swirled around Danny for only a moment. In that moment, Danny had closed his eyes. Great. He thought to himself as he opened them. I'm starting to close my eyes again. It took Danny a couple of seconds to realize that the Grimm hadn't just changed itself or his clothing.

He has changed his _form_...

Danny was no longer in his ghost form, but rather in his _human_ form...with an exception of a black hoodie over his regular tee. The watch has reappeared on his left wrist once more.

"A Danny Phantom fan?" Wayne asked. Danny was confused but then realized that his alternate ego's logo must be on the back of his hoodie. "Heh. I didn't know you were into ghosts." Wayne paused, and Danny could literally feel that Wayne has realized something. "Wait...wasn't your hair..._white_?"

Before Danny could pull up his hood to cover his identity, Wayne had turned him completely around so that he could clearly see Danny's sky blue eyes and raven black hair. Wayne's mouth opened and closed several times like a gaping fish. Danny grinned sheepishly.

"Well...that'll be very narcissistic of me to be a fan of myself." Danny told Wayne.

* * *

Danny had to let Wayne sit down for a while as tried to figure out what was happening. It turns out that Danny is still in-as he calls it-'Grim Reaper mode', for he is still intangible to everything. So, just because he_ looks _like he's human doesn't mean he actually is one. He sighed as he glanced at Wayne, who was still muttering.

Frankly, Wayne believes that this is all a dream. That he might've accidently took a drink from some weird concoction at Sampson's Tavern (whatever and where ever that was) and that he's in a hangover right now. Da'Shawn is actually on the couch snoring with a lit cigarette hanging in his mouth. Grandma with her ivory walking stick whacking rowdy customers while cooking some brown rice. Emily eating cheese fondue...

Danny had enough of Wayne's mutterings and grabbed him harshly by his collar.

"Look, Wayne, I know you're totally in a surreal moment right now, but if you really want to save that jerk of a teacher of yours, then we really better get going before it's too late!" Danny said all of this in one sentence. Wayne still had that dazed look about, and Danny huffed. "Or...we could forget your...lame excuse of a teacher and go to this...'Sampson's' place and drink our merry way to the oblivion." Danny suggested, even though he knew that they were both too young to drink; but it seemed to snap Wayne's focus towards the task at hand.

"You're right..." Wayne said. Danny released Wayne's collar, who stood up and stretched a bit before he look at Danny. A sense of friendship prickled its way down Danny's spine. For some odd reason, Danny felt like he and Wayne were somehow _connected. _"Well...let's get going then. And try your best to act as humanly as possible." Wayne told Danny, somehow knowing that Danny is still the Grim Reaper, but in his human form. Danny nodded as he followed his new friend on a mission to save his pathetic excuse of a human being teacher.

* * *

It's a lot harder to pretend that you're solid than Danny had thought as he picked his way through things he would usually just walk through. After almost two months of freely walking, Danny was seeing that acting like a human was a challenge. Of course it didn't help with what few people that are out on the streets in this dreadful hour couldn't see him. Some people they past waved at Wayne, who in return, waved back but kept on moving forward. It was as if he was mission-which they were.

They rounded around a corner when Wayne stuck out his arm in front of Danny, who knocked into him.

"What-?" Danny began, but Wayne gave him the look that said shut-up-and-don't-do-anything-stupid. Then Danny felt it.

There was much spiritual energy...all coming from one way.

"A group." Wayne said, confirming to Danny that they are about to meet some potentially mean people. "They're part of the Brotherly Band." He whispered so softly. Danny looked up at him.

"You mean a gang?" He asked.

"This one? Yeah, this one is more of a gang." Wayne said in a quiet tone. "Listen Danny, they're going to sense you if you get too close."

"What are you talking about? They can't-"

"Yes, they _can_." Wayne hushed him. "You're the Grim Reaper, which means you can't truly hide your aura."

"What?! That bites."

"Yeah, it does. I've heard Sampson complain about it all the time...and so does Whitecloud." Wayne agreed with him. Danny didn't know who these people are, but judging how Wayne relates to them as if he meets them on a daily basis made Danny somehow already trust these unknown people. "Either way, they're going to sense you, and you're going to have to beat it."

"Why don't I walk through a building to bypass them?" Danny asked. Wayne shook his head.

"Don't even chance it, Danny. There are buildings that have some powerful spells on them." Danny cocked his head.

"Spells?"

"Well, they're not really spells, but more like objects that have a set amount of spiritual energy in it, that is-I guess-'programed' to do a certain thing. Ever heard of those Guardian Angel Stones? Well, inside the stones is a very small amount of spiritual energy that is 'programed' to help those people who believe in such things; like for wealth or love or some other kind of desire." Wayne told Danny. Man, is Danny glad that Wayne can actually explain things to him. "But they can only work for a limited amount of time before it stops working, thus either people buy new ones or can recharge them. The reason why I don't want you to walk through these buildings is that some of them as a spell called 'Death Wary'; which makes it impossible for the Grim Reaper to enter and usually sets off an alarm."

"Okay, I get the point." Danny said. I ever realized that being the Grim Reaper can be so dangerous... He thought to himself before he continued. "Fine, I'll run away when they get too close." Danny told Wayne; although he was lying, Wayne couldn't tell. There's absolutely no way that Danny's gonna leave Wayne to fight for himself, especially what he has seen today.

As they round the corner, they saw their potential enemy. There were about four young men, all wearing the same clothing: red undershirt with a black leather jacket over it, black jeans, and red Reebok sneakers. The only one who was somewhat unique was what must be the leader-for he wore a red bandana around his right bicep. They trudged together; their faces dark with seriousness. Wayne and Danny were across the street from them, so maybe they could get by without being detected.

"You better bring your A-game." Wayne told Danny as casually as he could as they begin to walk ever closer to the gang. Danny tried to focus on what he was doing, but ever since their powers had reacted to each other, Danny has been bombarded with Wayne's feelings. It was bad enough that Danny felt nervous as they walked ever closer to the gang, but he also felt waves of nervousness and dread from Wayne. If these feelings are just from _connecting_ to each other, then Danny doesn't want to know what a _real_ bond is like. They were almost directly across the street from the gang when one of them tilted his. He bent towards his boss, whose dark eyes immediately flew across the street to rest on Wayne and Danny. They almost stumbled to a stop, but had to keep going. If they show any emotion, any hesitation, then they're doomed. Danny tried to shallow the panic down, but it was coming back up...like vomit.

"Danny!" Wayne shouted. Danny was so busy trying to push the panic down that he didn't realized that he had just walked through a row of mailboxes and newspaper outlets until he came out the other side. Oh, shoot. Danny thought as the gang immediately took a 90 degree right turn, crossing the street towards the pair of teens. "Go! Run!" Wayne said, pushing Danny forward. But neither of them was fast enough as the gang gathered around them in a semi-circle with the wall behind Danny and Wayne's backs.

They were stuck.

The leader stepped towards the two boys, glowering at them.

"Well, well, well..." He began, arms crossed threaten over his chest. His fellow members each pounded their fists into the palm of their other hand, a sneer on their faces. "What do we have here?" He asked. "A Reaper Lover and a little Reaper... This must be my lucky day." One of his members looked confused.

"But Boss." He began. "This Reaper...he isn't the same one that, well, you know, that-"

"Fool!" The Boss yelled at his fledgling, smacking him upside the head. "Don't be a stupid idiot! It's him-I know it. Don't you know that the Grim Reaper can also change his physical appearance? He's just fooling us that he's a child!" Danny couldn't help to think how cool it would be to physical change his appearance, but then again; because of that, he might get the beating of his life...

"Please." Wayne pleaded with the men. "We're just passing through. Just let us go." Immediately, a member went up to Wayne and punched him in his cheek with a loud smack. Danny could almost physically feel Wayne's pain as he stumbled backwards, dazed, from the slap-a red circle showing brightly from his cheek. Danny helped Wayne steadied.

"Shut up, you damn Reaper Lover." The man voice was filled with amusement as he talked. Danny felt rage rise from out of nowhere as the man began to laugh at Wayne's weakness-at Wayne's belief. His rage consumed him as the man continued to laugh at his friend.

Danny didn't think.

Next thing he knew, he was throwing punches at the man with his inhuman ghost strength, feeling a wave of satisfaction as he felt his punches land their marks. The man flew backwards, landing on the ground on his back. Before Danny could've done anything more, two more members jumped on him, their spiritual energies being used against him. Danny tried to fight back-I mean, he's been in plenty of ghost fights, right?-but with two grown men using their powers against him, Danny was losing. Danny somehow got out of the tumble, falling to the ground. Wayne was also down-due getting whooped by the leader. The leader sneered at the two panting, worn-out, weak teens. Dread rose in Danny's throat.

"Time to finish this." He said, pulling out some brass knuckles with his orange spiritual energy powering them up; just like how Da'Shawn's gun had worked. Danny closed his eyes, knowing that this is it...

This is the end.

Then a wave of eerie coldness washed over his senses, as if he was drowning in an ice-filled river. The gang members gasped. And a rushing sound of power reached Danny's ears. He opened his eyes slowly.

Standing right in front of him was a thin man, his back against the two teens. He wore boot-cut jeans over steel-toed boots (does everyone in Milwaukee wear steel-toed boots?); the hood from the white hoodie covered his head-and probably his face. His right arm of his hoodie was oddly red. Blue sparks trailed from his fingers. Wayne was shivering.

"Wh-who is that?" Wayne chattered at Danny. Wayne's face was morphed into a mask of horror and dread. Danny was still staring at the man when he answered his friend.

"That's the Grim Reaper." Danny told Wayne.

* * *

Wayne couldn't believe his eyes, and neither could Danny. The Grim Reaper appeared in the nick of time, taking out a couple of gang members. The members immediately got up and stood were they were, unsure whether or not they should go to their leader's side. The leader was taken aback.

"Y-you're..." He choked out. "You're the...Grim Reaper?" He asked.

"And who else am I supposed to be?" The Reaper said in a monotone dry voice. "Your grandma?" Then a hard look appeared on the leader's face.

"It's your entire fault!" He shouted at the Reaper, pointing at him. "If you hadn't arrested me that night, I could've saved her from being murdered!" The Reaper 'arrested' him? Danny thought to himself. But shook his head. It's none of his business. The Reaper sighed, as if he has been through this millions of times.

"It is not my fault that your grandmother died." The Reaper said with real sorrow in his voice. "It was her time."

"Fuck no, it wasn't!" The leader screamed at the Reaper. "And now you're finally gonna pay!" He lunged at the Reaper, orange energy surrounding the brass knuckles. The Reaper expertly dodged this, and barely dodged the other members' attacks. Blue sparks fizzled to life in the Reaper's hands as he shot two of the members simultaneously. They flew backwards as if they were being hit by a rocket-propelled punching glove. The other member rushed at the Reaper, pulling out his gun. Before he could even shoot, the Reaper grabbed the gun and slammed it into the member's face, making him fall backwards. The Reaper grinned and dodged the leader's brass knuckles. Sparks fizzled from the Reaper's hand as he punched the leader in the gut. But the leader was a lot tougher than his fellow comrades and continued to fight with the Reaper.

Danny could not believe how well the Reaper was fighting...as if it was in his natural instincts to fight...almost like he was _born_ like this. It's almost like how Danny is when it comes to fighting ghosts...it just comes natural. Eventually, the leader and the Reaper got into a tussle. The leader was on the bottom while the Reaper was on top, pinning the leader against the ground. Again, Danny's blue eyes jumped onto the Reaper's right arm, which was still red. Why the heck is it red? Danny thought to himself. Unless...

It's a _bond_.

Almost as if the Reaper had read Danny's thoughts, his cold pupil less eyes met Danny's live ones, instantly making Danny literally _froze_.

"Wha~?" Danny mumbled as some sort of _knowledge_ bombarded into his mind. He felt like he had released his senses, but it felt more powerful-for his range increased dramatically. He knows whose he looking for and he felt the man's hostile energy from miles away...in a warehouse...

It was Da'Shawn's.

A tugging sensation formed in his gut. Danny automatically grabbed Wayne's hand. But he hesitated. He's worried about the Grim Reaper as the other gang members came to and began to reform their semi-circle. The Reaper looked into Danny's concerned eyes.

"_Go_." He ordered Danny. And the two teens vanished from the scene.

* * *

The Reaper smiled once Danny had left the scene, knowing that Danny would most certainly appear where that bas-bread pudding Da'Shawn was. Wait...that didn't sound right, now did it? The Reaper could feel that the gang members were back on their feet and were approaching him. The leader sneered at the Reaper that made the Reaper unusually annoyed-which was odd.

"Get ready for the beating of your afterlife." The leader threatened. The Reaper sighed. He's worried that once he leaves, they would go after Danny and Wayne-or worse-the tired Da'Shawn. He needs to scare them away... "You bastard of a white bitch." Usually, the Reaper ignores this kind of taunting, but for some odd reason, he grew angry. And when he grows angry-so does the darkness inside of him.

The darkness...

He could use _that_ to scare away these jerks.

The Reaper smirked to himself as he let his anger overtake him; along with the darkness that follows. He felt his soul straining against this power, causing pain to the Reaper. Using this power always made him weak and exhausted, but he really needs to teach these punks a lesson. He let the darkness solidify, selected a way he could use the darkness-like an app on a cell phone-as an effect and forced it out of his hand that held the man's collar.

Immediately, the man's body began to sickly change. The once nice full neck, deflated; showing the man's tendons and his Adam's apple. His chest also seemed to deflate; skin clinging so tightly against his rib cage. It was as if his blood was being sucked away, making everything underneath it visible to the naked eye. The man was struggling to breathe, his chin becoming thinner.

"You...you c-c-can't...do this..." The man struggled to say as if he was being gagged. His lips shriveled. The Reaper only smiled. The members were stiff with shock at what the Reaper was doing, like human statues. "You...c-c-c-c-c-c-can't k-k-k-kill me..." Even though all the man could see was the Reaper's dead eyes, he also saw the brilliant white teeth that flashed from the Reaper's insane smile. He leaned closer to the leader, his face barely an inch away from the other's. That aroma of death reeked into the leader's now flat nose.

"**_You wanna bet?_**" The Reaper growled in a voice so much of that of a demon's...

* * *

Danny and Wayne appeared outside of a warehouse building. Danny was back into his ghost form with his black robes and scythe out. Wayne was staring at Danny as if he had just founded the world's last unicorn.

"H-h-how did you know?" Wayne asked Danny who shrugged.

"I just knew..." Danny answered. Well, I knew after the Master of Souls basically told me. Danny thought to himself. Danny was still worried about the Reaper, but a manly scream pierced the air, interrupting his thoughts.

"Da'Shawn!" The teens shouted simultaneously. They rushed inside of the warehouse. The warehouse was pretty much empty. There were some tall crates on one side of the room and some trash littered the floor. Metal catwalks crisscrossed above them as they glanced around through the darkness, searching for Da'Shawn.

"Teacher!" Wayne called out into the gloom.

"Wayne!" Da'Shawn yelled from the darkness. Wayne breathed a sigh of relief. "Get the Fuck out of here!" Well, that's certainly something you didn't want to hear-period.

"Da'Shawn! We're here to save you!" Wayne shouted. They heard a shrill from the demon and some crashes from it, echoing throughout the hollow room; making it hard for the teens to figure out where the demon and Da'Shawn were.

"Who's the fuck is 'we'?" Da'Shawn asked, panting. He sounded a lot closer. "Wait...don't fuckin' tell me that you mean by..." This time, it sounded as if Da'Shawn was right above them, so Danny used his ghost energy to brighten up the place.

And sure enough, there was Da'Shawn, in the demon's mouth. Da'Shawn's jacket was torn on his right arm, showing a bright red mark-which his left palm also glowed. Blood oozed from his wounds as he struggled against the demon's mouth. Both were temporary blind while Da'Shawn yelled. "...that asshole of a Grim Reaper is here?!" Danny huffed.

"Yeah, I'm here!" Danny shouted as he flew up to the demon. Green energy filled the Grimm as he swung at the demon. The attack hit the blinded demon-who dropped the pissed off Da'Shawn. Danny quickly dived after him, catching him just before he hit the cement floor. Danny descended with Da'Shawn while Wayne rushed towards them. Once they touched ground, Danny glanced around, trying to find where the demon had gone off to. He could hear the demon whine in pain. Wayne took Da'Shawn off of Danny, who was staring daggers at him as if everything's _his _fault.

"Where is that damn asshole?" Da'Shawn shouted to Danny.

"Who?" He asked, still searching for that damn demon. Whoops. Danny thought as he face palmed himself. Great...that jerk is rubbing off on me...

"That Fucking Damn Assshole! The Grim Reaper!" He nearly screamed at Danny.

"He's...busy." Danny said, knowing that he was taking care of those punks. Da'Shawn scoffed as if he has heard that excuse before. "But he sent me here with Wayne." Danny decided to add in.

"So he sends me the lousy kid that knows crap." Da'Shawn muttered. Anger not only flashed through Danny's eyes, but also Wayne's; hostility bristling from them. Da'Shawn seemed to sense that something had happened between the two boys. "Wait... Don't fuckin' tell me that-"

But Da'Shawn didn't get to finish, for the demon swooped down at the group of males. The all dodged the demon's attack-barely missing its talons. Danny had enough of this and flew after the demon, lighting his way with his ghost powers. The demon shrilled as it tried to get away, but Danny wasn't having any of it. He put all of his energy into one big swing. His powers slammed into the demon. She shrilled painfully long as she disappeared from existence. Once she was gone for good, Danny flew back to the teacher and student, overhearing a part of their conversation.

"I see, so you've connected and didn't form a bond." Da'Shawn mumbled. Wayne nodded.

"Should we form a bond then? Since we seem compactible?" Wayne asked as Danny landed near them.

"No!" Da'Shawn shouted at his student-who flinched away. "You're not going to have a bond with the piece-of-crap Grim Reaper!" Danny huffed, annoyed; and so was Wayne, who gulped.

"W-why not?" Wayne said. He stood up straighter-as if he was standing up for himself. "_You_ have a bond with the Grim Reaper; so why can't I?"

"That's because I was forced to have a bond!" Da'Shawn yelled at his student, and then turned towards Danny. "Besides, the Grim Reaper will never come to save your life." Da'Shawn growled at Danny.

"But he saved our lives." Danny said before Wayne had the chance. Da'Shawn was confused.

"What the Hell are you talking about boy?" He asked the Reaper Boy. Danny sighed as he, along with Wayne, told Da'Shawn how the Grim Reaper saved them from being-basically-murdered by a gang of blood-thirsty Anti-Grim Reaper Activists. Once they were finished, Da'Shawn had a look of disbelief on his face, and then he shook his head. It almost looked like he was sad. "Well then," Da'Shawn began without any hostility what-so-ever in his voice. It sounded like he was a broken record, scratched up from years of use. "we better get going, before I die of blood loss." Wayne nodded and put his teacher's body against him. Danny felt an overwhelming feeling that he should help them get to the hospital (even though he had almost died trying to save Da'Shawn).

"Here," Danny said, laying his hand out for Wayne to grab. "I'll...teleport you guys to the closest hospital." Wayne hesitated while Da'Shawn glared at Danny.

"And why the Hell do you wanna help us?" Da'Shawn asked darkly. Danny thought to himself before answering him.

"Why not?" He told him. But instead of Danny, Da'Shawn saw a young girly man with black hair and light blue eyes wearing a police-like outfit. He smiled at Da'Shawn and ruffled his hair. "Why not?" He told the little boy. "Why not?" His soft voice echoed in Da'Shawn's memories.

Oh my dear God. Da'Shawn thought to himself; he knows his mouth is open now, but didn't bother closing it. He's just like that damn asshole of a Bastard...? Wait, isn't this kid that Danny Fenton/Phantom hero? And isn't the Fentons related to... Da'Shawn lowered his head to suppress the merf of laughter. I cannot believe this...uncle and nephew in the same bloody mess. He looked up; they were still inside the warehouse. Blood continued to leak from his wounds.

"Well, hurry up!" Da'Shawn suddenly yelled at Danny. "Unless you really want me to die." Danny had to sigh, for he felt like he was about to slap the jerk, but he didn't-for Danny saw Da'Shawn's face after Danny told him his answer.

How his face lit up for just a moment...

* * *

They appeared outside of a hospital. Danny let go of Wayne's hand.

"About damn time." Da'Shawn muttered as he began to walk on his own up towards the entrance of the hospital, leaving little tracks of blood on the sidewalk. "I hope Jesse is working tonight." He said as he went through the entryway into the hospital. Wayne chuckled as his teacher entered the lobby, already causing trouble with the nurses. Wayne, whose cheek has swollen a great deal, then turned towards Danny, who had some minor scratches and bruises but nothing else.

"This is good-bye?" Wayne asked the ghost boy. Danny nodded. The tugging resumed almost immediately when Da'Shawn and Wayne left his touch. "I'm pretty sure we'll meet again." Again, Danny nodded. Automatically, both teens looked at their hands-where their powers had confronted each other. Both knew that there's now a connection between them-one that will most likely form a very strong bond over time...

A bond of friendship.

A nurse came out of the automatic doors, rushing at Wayne. Wayne's wounds weren't as bad as his teacher's, but apparently, the nurse didn't care as she came closer to him. Wayne glanced at Danny one last time, giving him a small smile as he met the nurse a short distance later. Danny grinned as he turned his back on his new friend; letting the tugging sensation takeover his body as he transported to another person's death.

* * *

**Okay, originally three chapters but I thought that I mind as well just do it all in one chapter.**

**Line breaks=spacing between sections of paragraphs**

**I apologize for any spelling/grammar errors. Blame Microsoft Word.**

**Stupid shift + enter thingy**


	17. The Master of Death and his Pet

Danny stood over another dead body in a home in Villisca, Iowa. She died of a heart attack in her bed. Danny sighed as he did his job and walked outside into the Iowan air. There he felt powerful waves of intense dark energy coming from a white house that looked well over a century old. He knew that a very powerful, very evil demon was in there...and he could almost hear the screams of the past victims. He should go in there and dispose of it; but he couldn't move.

Danny remembers the last time he dealt with a super powerful demon...and he almost had lost his life...

He shook his head and walked on the gravel road; not making a sound. Lately, he's been distracted from his job-wondering about his situation.

He's been gone from the world of the living for two months now. He should've died by now from starvation and sleep exhaustion-for he hasn't ate nor slept for the past couple of months. He also recalled how Clockwork noted, when Danny had first transformed into the Grim Reaper, that he didn't see Danny's dead body anywhere. If by just _touching_ the Grimm can kill someone; then how come Danny's not dead? Is it because that he can see demons and the souls? But that wouldn't make sense; Benedetto, Da'Shawn, his aunt, and Wayne could see the same things Danny can see, but that doesn't mean that they could be able to live if they were to touch the Grimm... Maybe because of he's ghost half? Danny nodded his head as if it made sense. His ghost half-his _dead_ half-must be keeping his other half alive.

But how?

Danny's head began to pound; and he groaned. He's thinking too deeply about this. He glanced up and realized that he was now in a sea of endless corn. A tugging sensation came from his gut. Great, another one. Danny thought. He was about to get ready to teleport when a voice startled him.

'Hello there, Danny.' Called out a very familiar voice. Danny froze; he hasn't heard this voice in two months...

"Cl-clockwork?" Danny stuttered.

'Yes, it's me.' Clockwork replied. Danny had a funny feeling that Clockwork was talking to him through his mind. 'It's been a while since you've last seen me, hasn't it?' Danny was going to reply that they both hadn't seen each other, but realized that Clockwork must've kept watch on him as he did the Grim Reaper's job. A smile crept on Danny's face. Of course he would continue to watch over Danny... 'I was wondering...after you're done with your next job, if you can come to my humble home for a tiny bit.'

Danny's heart began to race. Clockwork wants him to come to his lair...where he first became the Grim Reaper...when he first got into this mess...

And possibly get out of...

"Absolutely!" Danny said, not bothering to keep his excitement from his voice. He could've sworn he heard Clockwork chuckled before the connection broke. Danny grinned as he disappeared from the cornfields of Iowa and into the cold Russian land. This would be his last time doing this...

And then he would finally be able to go home...

* * *

Meanwhile in a graveyard outside of Milwaukee, Wisconsin...

The Grim Reaper stood above a cemented grave; rage flowing out of his body like a torrential waterfall.

They had sealed his body in a cement cage. He gritted his teeth. He knew that a few months ago, someone had moved his grave-his body-and reburied it about a football field away from its original resting place to make way for a fancy dancy statue of Jesus. The Reaper didn't mind it at all. He knew such things happen and didn't care as long as they return his body into the earth.

That's the problem though. Instead of placing his rotting body into the beautiful soil, they put it in a coffin-his original one was completely rotted out-and then sealed it inside a cement bubble; forever trapping his body from returning to the earth. He clutched his hands; blue sparks fizzled to life from his anger. His last wish was to have his body return to the earth-and now his wish has been defied. But he really can't do anything about it. He has no money what-so-ever; and neither does his family. He could go ask Grandma or Sampson; but he still owes them about half a million in damages to their tavern (how the heck is he going to pay them back when he doesn't make any money?). Whitecloud is too busy with other things and he didn't dare go ask Da'Shawn for help after he had ignored his call and sent Danny in his steed.

"This bites." The Grim Reaper mumbled.

"That's usually how it is." Said a voice. The Reaper froze. He knows this voice; and his anger began to boil. "You're lucky though, at least your bones are buried at a nice, safe place-unlike mine."

"Why are you here?" The Reaper asked through clenched teeth. He turned his head around enough to see him. "Master of Death?"

The Master of Death chuckled. He-like Clockwork-are ghost, therefore the Grim Reaper cannot harm him. The Master of Death wore his worn brown cape with miniature skulls attached to his shoulders. His black leather jacket with spikes poking out at odd angles was zipped up almost all the way, revealing a red shirt underneath with a chained cross-which was a joke to him. He also wore torn up leather black pants that sort of clung to his body with shiny black boots that almost reached his legs. The ghost's hair was the color of blood as it covered some of his pale gray skin of his face. Blood swirled in his irises. He wore leather gloves over his hands with miniature spikes on the tops of each finger-making a deadly blow if you were punched by this hostile man.

"I can't visit an old friend?" He asked calmly, but his voice told the Reaper that he was planning something and he isn't going to like it. "It's been seven long years since I've last seen you..."

"And good riddens." The Master of Souls growled. The Master of Death lifted his black eyebrows in mock surprise.

"You still don't like me?" He inquired softly. "Even after I helped you reached your density sooner than you've expected?"

"You could've let me die on my own." The Reaper said with disgust. "You certainly didn't have to murder me in front of my family!" He was losing himself to rage, blue electricity flowed out of him; the temperature outside getting considerably colder. The Master of Death sneered.

"Ah, but you see, that's the problem _boy_." The Master of Death said, beginning to get a little fuzzier by the darkness that was pouring out of his body. "You know as much as I do how unique of a being you are; even when you were alive, you were always so different from everyone else. Hell, you're even different from all those other damn Grim Reapers." The Master of Souls bit his lip. Why he is talking about this to me? The Grim Reaper thought to himself. It's almost as if he's buying my time...but for what? "I had to kill you." The Master of Death said, snapping the Reaper's attention back onto him. "If I didn't, then you would most certainly be alive today."

Alive... Those words echoed in the Grim Reaper's mind. Today...

With my family.

The Reaper didn't think, he just acted as his rage controlled his actions. He hurled a massive ball of blue lightning at the ghost. But-just had Clockwork had warned him long ago-his attack didn't harm the annoying ghost, just passed through him like he was intangible. The ball of raw power smacked into some gravestones and flickered out. The Master of Death sneered.

"Oh come on. You know better than that." He sneered at the Reaper. "You can't kill me."

"And neither can you." The Master of Souls shot back with venom in his voice. The Master of Death laughed at this; making the Reaper unsure. The laugh sounded like he knew some terribly funny secret that the Reaper doesn't know. "What?" He asked. The Master of Death calmed down and looked at the Reaper with insanity flashing through his eyes.

"Are you sure about that?" He asked as his left hand hovered to his side, darkness beginning to gather at his fingers. "Are you _really_ sure about that?" The Reaper hesitated, making the Master of Death smile. "No. No, you're not sure at all." He growled contently as the darkness shot out of his hand and landed on the ground. The darkness was chaotic as it swirled around, growing bigger and bigger. As the darkness began to solidify, something tugged in the Reaper's memory, but he couldn't remember why this looked so familiar... Once the darkness had become solid, it looked much like that of a demon-but it was different from the demons that the Reaper fights against... Different, yet so familiar...

Then the memory hit him. Flashes from the scene from thirty years ago bombarded his sight. He and his elder brother getting attack, the Reaper lady was about to be killed, and a demon that wasn't a demon...

"YOU!" The Master of Souls shouted at the Master of Death. "You were the one who sent that thing after Elizabeth thirty years ago!" The Master of Death grinned and clapped his hands together in mock applause.

"Well done." He began with a growl. "It took your idiotic brain of yours to figure it out." Then he stopped and placed his hand onto his chest. "Yes, boy. I was the one who created that demon thirty years ago to kill that pathetic excuse of a Grim Reaper. She would've died, but you got in the way." He looked like he was about to rekill the Reaper. "I would've never expected a living boy to possess such death-difing power..." Then he smirked-as if he had won a chess game. "But that demon was so weak, for the Reaper girl was even weaker, so I didn't bother using up my powers to make an even stronger one." Bile rose in the Reaper's throat. He didn't have the Grimm with him, making him slightly less powerful than he really is. This is turning ugly before he even had the chance to escape. "That's why; I've used more of my power to come up with this one." The Master of Death said, petting the four foot demon as if it was a loyal dog. "I wonder how long you will last against him?"

And before the Master of Death could even blink, the Master of Souls attacked the creature with his hand full of blue sparks. He plunged his hand into the black creature, shocking it from the inside. That's how the Reaper takes care of more powerful demons; to dig his hand into the demon's body and attack it from within. The Master of Death chuckled evilly, causing the hair on the Master of Souls's neck to prickle.

"Smart. Very smart." The Master of Death said. "But I wouldn't do that if I were you..." Before the Master of Souls could heed the man's warning, he learned through the hard way. Pain shot through his entire being as if a vacuum was sucking his very soul. The Reaper gritted his teeth as waves of fatigue crashed over him.

The creature was draining his powers.

The Master of Souls immediately freed his hand, blue sparks trailing from it like ribbons. His body was in terrible pain as he increased his distance between himself and the dark creature. He groaned from the pain-as if the creature had sucked out some of his soul... The creature itself didn't look like it was in pain at all, but rather a bit bigger-as if absorbing the Reaper's powers made it stronger. The Master of Death chuckled.

"Make sure you feed my pet well." The Master of Death said as he disappeared back into the Ghost Zone. The Master of Souls glared at the creature, who swiped its gray tongue around its lips.

This... This could be bad...

* * *

Danny sat at the oak table. He was in Clockwork's lair and Clockwork was off preparing some tea for them to drink. Danny has never had tea before, so when Clockwork asked Danny if he wanted one sugar cube or two, Danny shrugged. Clockwork automatically dumped six sugar cubes into Danny's tea. Danny frowned as Clockwork passed him the brownish water.

"Drink up." Clockwork said as he, too, took a drink. Danny wasn't sure whether or not his hand would go through the cup, but he tried anyways. To his surprise he picked up the cup with ease. He sighed and took a sip. Hm...not too bad. Danny thought as he took another drink. He didn't realized how thirsty he was until he had finished his cup. He put his cup gently down on the table. Clockwork raised an eyebrow when he saw Danny's empty cup.

"I was thirsty." Danny said as an excuse.

"I don't blame you." Clockwork said as he poured some more tea. This time Danny put in the sugar cubes. He had about ten cubes in his cup before Clockwork stopped him. "Any more sugar and you'll have a sugar high." Danny rolled his eyes and drank his tea with the Master of Time. When they both placed their cups onto the table, Danny got down to business.

"Why am I here Clockwork?" He asked the Master of Time. Clockwork smiled at the Ghost Boy.

"I think you know why..."

* * *

Meanwhile...

The Reaper was running through the trees of the nearby forest to the graveyard. His shoes snapped twigs and greenery were brushed aside as the Reaper ran. Blood trailed down his cheek and his bare arms. His tattered black robe shortened, covering only his upper half of his body. The creature was stealing the Reaper's energy; and now the Reaper was weak. He paused behind a tree and listened as the demon came after him. Worry drowned the Reaper as he heard the rustle of something very big moving.

This is just great. The Reaper thought to himself as he heard the demon squash a bush. We're both visible to the living world... This can be very bad... The Reaper covered his wound on his arm with his hand, trying to stop the bleeding. He hopes that he can't die of blood loss-which would be very weird cuz he's already dead... The Reaper's senses flinched and he pushed himself off the tree just in time as the demon cracked the same tree in half. The demon-which was now about the same height as the Reaper-roared at its miss. The Reaper gritted his teeth and tried to get his powers working again, but the lightning only fizzled pathetically. The demon charged at the Reaper, who dodged and began to run again. The demon followed, causing a ruckus along the way.

If I remember correctly... The Reaper thought to himself as he ran through the woods with the huge demon behind him. It should be around here somewhere... He jumped over some bushes and had to immediately dive to the ground. The demon leapt over the bushes also, but was too slow to realize why the Reaper was on the ground. The demon was hovering over a space of empty air for a split second before it fell a hundred feet to the ground. The Reaper grinned broadly as he got up. He remembered this cliff fondly because he and his brother had almost died because of it. He glanced down at the demon-who had taken down a couple of trees from its fall.

"What's wrong?" The Reaper called down to the demon. "Can't keep up?" He shouldn't be fooling around, but he couldn't help himself. The demon was a hundred below him-scratch that-make it ninety five feet below him as the demon began to climb up the cliff. The Reaper spun around and took this opportunity for a head-start and ran off. "This...absolutely sucks..."

* * *

"I'm going home?" Danny hopefully suggested. Clockwork eyed him sadly. "Wait...please doesn't tell me..." Clockwork sighed, smiling.

"Danny, I've called you here for only one reason and one reason only." Clockwork said. Danny's heart began to race; dread rose in his throat like bile. He began to sweat furiously. He just had to know...

"And what reason would that be?"

* * *

The Reaper didn't pay attention as he ran, for he knew these woods fondly from his childhood. He was too busy listening to how much closer the demented demon was gaining when he ran into something.

"Hey!" Shouted an anger voice.

Scratch that-make that into a some_one_.

The Reaper looked up at the person he had run into. The person was a young teenage male. Dull black hair covered most of his face and traveled down past his shoulders. He wore a designed tee with torn up jeans. His Reebok sneakers peeked out from under his pants legs. His brown eyes burned with annoyance.

"Who the Hell are you?" He asked the Reaper.

"Richard!" Called out an older voice. And another male appeared besides the first. The Reaper knows that this man is the teenager's older brother. The man had brown and brown eyes. He wore a collared shirt and cameo pants. He wore steel-toed boots. The man glanced at the Reaper. "Who's this?" He asked his brother, realizing that the Reaper was here.

The younger brother-Richard-replied to his older brother. The Reaper moaned inside of himself as he heard the demon approaching closer to not only him-but the living also. He has no time for this... The brothers heard something big move, and glanced towards it. The Reaper cursed under his breath.

"What was that?" The younger brother asked. Before the elder got a chance to say something, the Reaper interrupted.

"Run!" He shouted at the two brothers. They glanced at him.

"Why?" Asked the elder. The demon was getting closer.

"Because..." The Reaper faltered, not sure what to tell them. "Because...a bear is coming!" The brothers stared at the Reaper as if he was crazy. Bears? So close to the city? Their faces seemed to say. The Reaper's senses went haywire-meaning that the demon was upon them. They heard the demon's growl. And the Reaper screamed at the brothers. "Michael and Richard McLath, RUN!"

But they didn't have the chance to heed the Reaper's warning-for the demon attacked the brothers. They screamed as the demon bit them, blood spraying everywhere. The Reaper leaped up; his need to protect the living flowed through his being. He knew he was too weak to fight against this power-sapping demon; but his eyes went solid sky blue; lightning blazed around his body, especially around his right hand. And he charged at the demon with superhuman speed.

"Leave Them Alone!" The Reaper shouted at the demon. He slammed his fist of blue lightning into the demon, a sickening sound echoed in the woods. The brothers stared in horror at the scene before them. The Reaper thought he did it-that he destroyed the demon...

Then he felt it. It was as if a vacuum was sucking up all of his essence...all of his energy. His eyes went back to his normal pupil less ones as pain erupted inside of his soul. He screamed in pain as he pulled himself away from the power eating demon. Blue electricity still being sucked by the demon-which grew a couple of inches and four limbs morphed from its sides. Now, it was the Reaper's turn to stare in horror. This situation had just gone from bad to worse. He was too dazed to realize that one of the demon's new limbs smacked him, flinging towards a tree. A sick thud sounded as the Reaper's back slammed against the tree. He let out a groaned as he collapsed on the ground.

The demon switched its target from the Reaper to the brothers; both whom were standing there like buffoons. The demon licked its lips. The brothers had missed their chance to escape from this horror as the demon attacked them. The Reaper literally spassed as he listened to the demon attacking the brothers. He tried with all his will to move-to help the brothers-but his latest power drainage exhausted him. And then, he felt it...

The brothers were dead.

The Reaper choked back a sob. He could've saved them. He could've saved them if he wasn't such an idiot... Two more people to add to his list of people he could've saved. That could've lived...

Then, pain busted from every fiber of his being. He yelped, teeth clenched together, then gasped. He felt a sort of spark that painfully numbed his head. He couldn't understand this new feeling until the demon lifted up its head.

"**Delicious**..." The demon said. The Reaper froze in suffocating dread.

The demon ate the brothers' souls.

The Reaper forced himself to look towards the demon-which had grown another two feet; its limbs were longer too. The Reaper bit his lip. The demon turned towards him, grinning broadly.

"**Time for the main course**..." It said smartly for a fabricated demon. The Reaper knows that if the demon eats him, than the demon will be unbeatable-Sampson, Grandma, Da'Shawn, Whitecloud, heck-not even Danny could defeat it.

Danny...

The Reaper recalled what Clockwork had said that Danny becoming the Grim Reaper will be necessary for the both of them. But the Reaper didn't really wanted Danny to get into this mess...wait...Danny IS already in this mess-his mess. The Reaper gritted his teeth as he pushed up from the ground, every single molecule of him screaming out in terrible pain. The Reaper managed to get himself sit up as he leaned himself against the tree. The demon was a good thirty yards away...and the Reaper had to make a choice...

Should he call on Danny's help? Or should they both die? The Reaper scrunched up his face in pain and in stress. If he doesn't call on Danny to help him and he dies-then Danny would truly be the Grim Reaper-meaning he'll also be dead. Or he calls on Danny...and...and...

The Reaper didn't get that far as the demon attacked him. He threw up his arms just in time to shield his face as the demon's limb slammed against him. The tree broke and the Reaper flew backwards another thirty yards before he tumbled onto the ground. His plain white tee was dirty and holey...his robes barely covering his shoulders now. He's surprised that his hood was just fine as he tried to pick himself back up. The demon was coming; and the Reaper had made his decision. He took a deep breath, and used the last of his energy for his wild card...

"_Danny..." _He called out, his chant rolling off his lips and into space.

* * *

**Originally was two, but I combined the two. I don't know if I'll do the same for the other two, but we'll see. ^^**

**I apologize for the spelling/grammar errors. (Blame Microsoft Word)**

**Oh, and please don't ask me about the Master of Death thing... I made him up back when Ulitmate Enemy was first gonna premiere (remember all of those commerials before the episode even aired?). Neither way, he was created to be pure evil and a pure...bastard, I guess. The only thing he doesn't have is a Name Name. Yep, that's right. He's been here for at least six years and he still doesn't have a name! Don't except him to come back...maybe... I don't know... *sighs***


	18. The Reaper's Identity

After Danny had asked Clockwork for the reason why he was here; Clockwork was silent for a while before he began to drink his tea. Danny waited a bit longer before he gave in the temptation to take another drink-annoyed at the Master of Time. His cup of tea was halfway to his mouth when he felt an odd chill prickled the base of his neck.

"_Danny._.." Called out a voice.

Danny froze. His tea splashed a little-for he kind of overdid it with the sugar cubes. Clockwork glanced at Danny, watching him with his all-knowing red eyes.

"_Danny_..." The voice of the Master of Souls called out to Danny. "_Come to me._..."

Instantly, Danny's body obeyed. Even though consciously he had no idea where the Grim Reaper was, his subconcisousness did. He disappeared from the Ghost Zone; the tea cup falling down towards the floor. It crashed and shattered, tea splattered everywhere. The Master of Time sighed depressingly, but grinned.

And so the Master of Souls chose the chance of life in the end. Clockwork thought to himself as he finished his tea. He glanced at where the broken tea cup laid on the floor. Now...if only he could stop breaking my tea cups in the process...

* * *

Danny reappeared inside a somewhat dense forest outside of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The sight he saw before him was horrifying. The Grim Reaper was badly injured; blood was trailing down his face and along parts of his body. For the first time, Danny actually got to see the Reaper's clothing from underneath his robes; for his robes only covered his shoulders and his hood still covered his face (why doesn't the Reaper like to show his face?). He wore the boot-cut jeans and steel-toed boots (what's Milwaukee's thing with steel-toed boots?). The Reaper wore just a plain white tee that had lots of dirt, holes, and blood stains on it. The Master and his apprentice stared at each other before the Reaper talked.

"Don't just stand there, Danny." The Reaper said, sounding more like Da'Shawn than he wanted to... "Do something about that demon!" That's when Danny realized that there's a demon nearby. He looked towards the overpowering dark energy and froze.

This demon was so much more humanoid (minus the extra four arms) than the demon that had almost killed Danny. The demon was towering over Danny; six arms prepared to fight. The demon had a confused look on its face, and then it grinned.

"**Ah...so you have an apprentice**..." The demon said harshly. Dread crawled up Danny's throat. There's absolutely no way how that Danny can defeat this thing. But he had to try. He can feel the Reaper's exhaustion rolling off of him like waves. Danny hefted the Grimm, prepared to attack.

"Wait. I need to warn you-" The Reaper began to warn his nephew about the demon's deadly ability, but Danny had already flew to attack the demon. "DANNY, Don't!" The Reaper shouted, but it was too late. Danny swung the energy filled Grimm and it smacked into the demon. Danny was about to attack again when one of its limbs grabbed him.

"Da?" Danny said as he struggled.

"Danny!" The Reaper shouted. He winced at the pain that burned from his wounds. He tried to command Danny, but his power was too weak. "Danny! Get out of there!" He shouted instead. Damnmit. The Reaper thought to himself. I'm so weak that I'm useless...

Danny kicked and grumbled, but there was no such luck to free himself for the demon's grasp. He was about to teleport when something terrible happened. Danny felt like he was getting weaker...dizziness clouded his head. He couldn't understand what's happening...it felt like he was losing himself...

...like his powers were being sucked away...

The Reaper gritted his teeth and got painfully up; a strong desire to save a living being crawled out from a pit deep inside of him. Even though he was totally weak and basically had no powers left; he stood up, ready to pound the demon to the oblivion, one thought echoing through his mind. He will NOT have his nephew die on him. A dark power rose to his calling. He doesn't want to use this kind of power...he knows that he'll be exhausted from it, but he had no choice.

It was either Danny lives or Danny dies...

The Reaper allowed the darkness to physically come out, causing him even more pain. The demon paused, still holding Danny-who moaned out in pain, his eyes glued shut.

"**Wha~?"** The demon began, but the Reaper quickly used this darkness to slice the hand that held Danny off of its limb. The demon roared in pain as its hand disintegrated, leaving Danny to fall. The Reaper leapt to catch Danny as well as dodged the demon's attack. The Reaper wheezed from using the dark energy-which has now disappeared. The Reaper could feel his soul falling apart. He needs a strategy and soon... Danny began to stir in the Reaper's cold arms.

"Wha~?" Danny mumbled out. The Reaper almost dropped him as he stopped to let Danny down. The Reaper was in worse shape than before, with exhaustion wearing him down. His robe now barely covering his neck...

"We need to get out of here!" The Reaper told Danny. The Reaper doesn't usually run away from battles, but this one is an exception. They were losing badly, and they really need to rest so that they could have their powers regenerate...

"How?" Danny asked. By the tone of Danny's voice, he may not be able to teleport them somewhere safe. The Reaper swore under his breath.

"I-I'll teleport us..." The Reaper began as he watched the demon approach them, this time with rage. "You...you just give me some of your energy and think of _where_ you know we'll be safe...and far enough away from this thing..." The Reaper gritted his teeth; he knows where Danny was thinking of already and he can't really blame him for it.

"Okay." Danny said. He helped steadied the Reaper as he tried to force out his remaining energy into the dead man. There's only one place that Danny could really think of at the moment...and the Reaper sighed, knowing all too well that this isn't going to sit well. The Reaper felt Danny's overwhelming desire to return to the one place he truly believes is the safest place for them...

Amity Park.

* * *

The demon howled into the air. Beyond angry, for its main meal had been snatched away. He was THIS close to have Death's power! The demon was about to attack the closest city to eat when it felt the Reaper's presence again. The demon paused and sniffed the air. They are a while's aways off but it won't take long for the powerful demon to get there. The demon smiled...already looking forward to snacking on a few souls along the way on his road trip to find the Master of Souls and his apprentice...

* * *

Once again, Danny had closed his eyes. He sighed as he opened them once more. The Grim Reaper and he was in his parents' lab in the basement. They had appeared just in front of the Ghost Portal-as if they had came out of it. Danny was still helping the Reaper stay upright. To Danny's surprise, everyone dear to him was in the basement. His family, Tucker, Sam, and even Valerie was there. But oddly enough, they were staring at the portal. Danny turned around to see what they're staring at, but couldn't see it. As he turned his head back forward, a voice got his attention.

"Danny...?"

It was Sam's.

Danny stared blankly at the group of people he loved the most.

"Danny?" Sam said again, this time her voice sobbed.

"Sam..." Danny replied. And they ran at each other. He let the Grimm fall from his hand as he reached for Sam, landing somewhere between him and the portal. "Sam!" Danny exclaimed as he grabbed her and held her close. He gave her a quick kiss on the lips before she got the chance to say-nor do-anything.

"Danny." Sam said his name again, tears of happiness forming in her eyes. At this point, everyone else had gathered around the couple. Danny's family bear-hugged him along with Tucker and Valerie. Yup, it was a beautiful reunion...but it had to be cut short. A terrible cough rang out; and the group turned towards the cougher. It was Reaper; and he looked sickly pale, blood stains on his shirt had grown. Danny had totally forgotten the Grim Reaper. His parents pulled away from the group of teens.

"Danny..." His mother began. "Who is this?" At this, the Reaper smiled-even though his hood covered his facial features except his eyes.

"You don't remember me, Madeline Fenton?" The Reaper asked a little hurt. Maddie's mouth opened. "Or you, Jack'O'Latern?" The Reaper then said to Jack; who also opened his mouth, but more in recognition than shock. The Reaper knows his cover is about to be blown as he wheezed...he might as well blow his cover and save some more of his power now than later. The Reaper sighed and the remainder of his robe disappeared; revealing his entire head.

His jet-black hair was messy...and it looked like it needed a trim. He had a little tuff of a beard on his sharp chin. His face reminded Danny of someone he once knew...heck, seeing his face uncovered like this makes Danny wonder...

"No..." Maddie was the first to mutter. "You-you're supposed to be dead..." Her hands flew up to cover her mouth. Jack stared in disbelief. Jazz looked like she has been cornered by a bunch of failed tests. Danny didn't get why everyone in his family was freaking out. Sure, the Reaper looks like someone familiar...someone he hasn't seen for a very long time. In fact the last time Danny has seen someone that looked like him was in a coffin in Milwaukee, Wisconsin...

And he was dead...

Realization hit Danny in the face. The Reaper...he looks so familiar...because...because... It was Valerie who broke the stunned silence.

"Who are you?" She asked the Reaper, who smiled kindly at the girl.

"Ah, yes. You three don't know me, do you?" The Reaper asked. He let out a sigh. "Well...since I know your names, I might as well tell you mine and who I am as well." He took another breath, and smiled upon the three teenagers. For some odd reason, he looked like he was insane because of his current appearance. "As you know, I'm the Grim Reaper. And as you can see by the looks of the Fentons' faces, they know me-for I'm Danny and Jazz's uncle-in-law. And as for my name...

"The name's Maximilian Masters."

* * *

**One more chapter that I'm gonna upload tonight and then I'll gonna do my homework. *Sighs inwardly***

**Now you all know who the Grim Reaper is. ^^ If you wish to see a picture of him please go to my Deviantart account (my username is the same) and go into my Gallery and click on the folder that says Grim Reaper Chronicles: Extras. **

**I apologize for any spelling/grammar mistakes. Once again, I blame Microsoft Word.**


	19. A Conversation with a Dead Man

Silence.

For once, the busy lab was absolutely silent and still. Everyone stared at the dead man while he stared at the living. They knew his identity...and they have no idea what to do next... It was then, Jack moved towards the Grim Reaper-wait-their uncle...

Their dead Uncle Max.

He stopped short of Max, easily towering over him in both height and width. Compared to Jack, Max looked like a woman. He took a careful step back. He has no idea what Jack would do to him. But before he knew it, Jack had wrapped his huge arms around the dead man, lifted him so high that the dead man's head peeked over his shoulder, and squeezed him tight.

"Maxy!" Jack cried with joy. But everyone else in the room didn't share his excitement-especailly the one who was being bear-hugged by an enormous pumpkin.

"Jack..." The Grim Reaper-Max-choked out. "You're squeezing the death outta me..."

"Oh." Jack said, realizing that he's squeezing the dead man a little _too_ hard, and placed the bloody up Reaper's feet back onto solid ground. Blood was on Jack's orange jumpsuit. The Reaper rubbed his back as if Jack squeezed it too hard. "You haven't changed one bit, Maxy." Max shot a glare at Jack.

"I've been dead for seven years, Jack." He began. His hand went to his arm, covering one of his wounds. "I would hope I haven't changed since." Blood was dripping from undernearth is hand. Maddie's face went from shock to concern.

"Max..." She said, grabbing the two grown men's attention. "You're bleeding." Max rolled his dead eyes at the question. The eye roll seemed to say, 'What does it look like to you?'. "Shouldn't we bandage it before you-"

Before he dies of infection or blood lost? Maddie thought immediately, shaking her head from her stupid question. He's already dead!

"Just to be safe; we should bandage it." Max answered her unfinished question, glancing at his wound.

"Okay. Then go sit on that counter over there." Maddie told the dead man, gesturing to the low counter that the Fentons use to treat injuries. "I need to go get the First Aid Kit." She said, walking off to getting the kit. There were so many questions that Maddie Fenton had for the dead man, but she bit them back. Right now, she needs to get started on treating his and her son's injuries before questioning anything.

Max went over to the counter, wincing slightly as he sat on its top. Jack turned towards the teens.

"Jazz, go get some paper towels and disinfectent." Jack told his eldest. Jazz finally broke out of her trance and bolted up stairs and into the kitchen. Danny, Sam, Tucker, and Valerie continued to stand there in mild shock. Jack, then turned towards Danny. "Danny, you might as well get over here too." Jack told his son, his eyes resting on his son's injuries. Danny blinked several times before he finally understood.

"Oh...okay..." He said, making his way towards his Dad and his...dead uncle?

Danny just could not believe that his uncle is the Grim Reaper! I mean, how is he the Grim Reaper in the first place? Danny thought to himself as he approached the counter, along with his friends, trailing slightly behind him. He's like...in his 40s! or 30s? And he's supposed to be Vlad's younger brother! Ugh! My head hurts...

Danny's muddy thoughts swam around his head. He was so confused, and he wasn't the only one as Jazz and his mother returned to the basement. Everyone was just as confused as Danny as Maddie opened the kit. The only person who didn't even looked remotely uncomfortable due to the situtation was Max, who was mildly enteraining himself with his bloodied shirt.

"Take off your shirt." Maddie said. Max obeyed and took off his bloody holey shirt.

For someone who has spent the last few years battling demons and what-not; Max was a pretty thin, flat guy. Plus with his shirt off, he looked much more like a teenager, for he didn't have any chest hairs. It reminded Sam of someone and glanced at Danny; who notice her glance and blushed. There was plenty of blood from Max's wounds-which were pretty severe; most were deep and wide. And there were also a few bruises that were as big as basketballs. Tucker gagged and had to look away, mumbling something about supermodels. Maddie went straight to work, rubbing alcohol wipes on his cuts.

"Jazz, clean your brother's wounds." Maddie told her daughter, still busy with Max's. Jazz nodded and grabbed some wipes along with bandages. Danny removed his robe completely and let it drop to the floor, stirring the air slightly. Jazz went to work; her face was full of concern for her little brother. Danny's injuries were mostly bruises from the demon and a cut or two. Jazz was done within two minutes while Maddie began to wrap some gauze over one of Max's wounds.

"So...Max." Maddie suddenly said to break the silence that had descended into the basement. Max stopped messing with his shirt and looked at Maddie. "Do you mind telling me what's going on with you and Danny?"

"Well..." Max began, looking very unsure and completely at lost for what to say. He really didn't want to tell, or show, Jack and Maddie who he really is...again. Might as well tell what had just happened rather than try to explain with what is really going on. Max thought to himself. "I went for a walk in the woods and suddenly, this huge black thing suddenly came after me-" He began to tell them.

"That's not what I meant!" Maddie snapped at Max, pressing the alcohol wipe deep into his wound. Max hissed from the burning sensation. "What I meant was: why are you still here? You're dead! And why does Danny have a robe and scythe, looking like a Grim Reaper!"

Before Max could answer her, Danny spoke.

"Because I am the Grim Reaper, Mom." Danny said. Everyone but Jazz and Sam blinked at his words.

"What!?" Maddie shouted, whirling to face Max while forcing the alcohol wipe into his wound. Max flinched from the disinfectant's chemicals as they burned inside his wound.

"Would you please stop doing that!?" Max roared at Maddie. Maddie flinched, but still glared at the dead man as she pulled out the wipe.

"Then explain, Maximilian Artemis Masters." She said darkly at the Reaper. "Explain what is going on with you, Danny, and this...Grim Reaper nonsense. Max let out a puff of annoyance, his eyes flashed at the insult.

"First of all, this 'Grim Reaper nonsense' isn't nonsense." He practically growled at Maddie. "Second of all, it's not my fault that Danny's in this mess. It's Clockwork's." Danny's green eyes widen.

"Clockwork's?" Danny shouted in surprised. "What are you talking about? What does Clockwork want me to do with you?" Max's gazed rested on his nephew, sighing softly.

"Clockwork...he said..." Max began. He was so unsure whether or not to tell the boy this, but he really doesn't want to take the blame for making Danny a Reaper. He decided to tell the truth, but only some of it. "Clockwork said that you becoming the Grim Reaper will be necessary for your survival."

And mine. Max silently added to himself. The only sound that could be heard was the bandage that was being wrapped around Max's wound as everyone digests what the dead man had just said.

"Alright." Maddie said. "So what if this wasn't your idea? I want to know what a Grim Reaper does and why. So stop stalling and start explaining." Max grumbled darkly about 'Maddie' and 'muffin mix'. He looked at Danny.

"Why don't you explain instead?" Max suggested to his nephew. Danny shook his head.

"Uh...no. Sorry...uh...M-a-x." Danny said, finding it weird to call the man he had once called the Reaper now his dead uncle-in-law. "But I'm just as confused. Clockwork told me stuff, but he mostly left me in the dark. ... Plus, how could I be the Grim Reaper when you're the Grim Reaper?" Danny asked as an afterthought. Max just stared at his nephew, anger slowly building up inside of him.

So he left _me_ to explain everything to him... Max thought grumpily to himself. If there were plants nearby, Max's aura would've made them wilt. I'm sooo gonna get you back for this, Clockwork!

Max sighed.

"Okay then." Max said, signaling that he was about to begin. But there's a problem...

_Where_ could he begin?

"Where should I start off first?" He asked the question out loud so that he could use the living's questions to start. Max felt a hot sting to another one of his wounds. He smiled as Maddie voiced her question first.

"Who are you really?" She asked him. Max lifted an eyebrow.

"Uh... I'm Maximilian Masters? ... Born on October 5, 1968 and died on November 5, 1997. ... Born and raised in Milwaukee? ... Currently having an afterlife career as a Grim Reaper-hey! That reminds me! I should get Grim Reaper of the millennia award!"

"Stop fooling around!" Maddie shouted at the dead man. "I mean, who are you really? If you're the Grim Reaper, then you've been around for hundreds and hundreds of years! You're just impersonating as Max!" Everyone was stunned by Maddie's words; especailly the Grim Reaper himself. He chuckled, scaring Maddie. A few chuckles later, the Reaper sighed; and Maddie once again, began to clean his wounds.

"I see that I'm going to have to start there..." He mumbled out softly. He looked up at the living, minus Maddie. "Just to make it straight, I am_ Max. _The oneyou knew when_ I_ was alive."

"Meaning?" Jack edged the dead man who proclaimed himself to be Max.

"I am who I always have been; I just actually have a job for once." The dead man said. Max had always had problems getting a job and staying with it, when he was alive.

"Elaborate?" Valerie growled.

"Ugh..." The Reaper moaned out. Then he muttered some inaudible words for a while before he began again. "Okay, first of all, there was never only one person as a Grim Reaper." Every living face was instantly morphed into confusion at the man's words. "And what I meant by that is that...uh...it's like any other job out there. You know; you get hired, work there for a while, then get fired or quit or die, and your boss finds some else to replace your position." Still confused looks. The Reaper sighed; his eyes glanced at Tucker, which made him smile. Tucker took a step back. "An example would be being a mayor of an establishment." The dead man said. "The mayor has that position for only a certain period of time before he/she hands it down to someone else."

Then it clicked.

"Wait!" Jazz said. "So, what you're trying to say is that the Grim Reaper is the same thing as having a job? That the position will continuingly be replaced by someone better-"

"-Or worse-" The Reaper quickly injected the word.

"-over time?" The Reaper smiled at Jazz.

"Exactly my point." He said. "It seems like letting you watch all those Nancy Drew episodes have helped you a lot." Jazz puffed.

"Only because you wouldn't let me watch the History Channel." Jazz said smartly to her dead uncle. Max smiled at her.

"Jazz, for the last time, the History Channel is _evil_."

"No, it's not."

"Yeah, it is."

"No."

"Yes."

"No!"

"Jazz, its evil, so stop." Danny said, wanting to end this pointless argument. Jazz stuck her tongue at the Reaper, who returned it with his own. "Besides, since you had just said that there can only be one Grim Reaper at a time, how come I'm the Reaper along with you?" Max returned his eyes on Danny, smiling at Danny's observation.

"Watching Nancy Drew has helped you too." He said as if he was singing. "Remember when you would blush every time they did a close-up on her-"

"Okay! Stop being distracted!" Sam yelled while Danny turned turn beet red from the Reaper's comment. "And answer Danny's question!"

"Okay, okay!" Max said rashly. "Clockwork didn't tell you how one becomes the Grim Reaper?" Danny blinked several times.

"Uh...no." Danny said.

"Artichoke!" Max suddenly swore out loud. Then he muttered under his breath. It sounded oddly something like this: His teapot better start fearing for its life... Danny assumed that Max was muttering about Clockwork's teapot. Then, he was silent for a while. The living waited patiently for Max's answer. But, unfortunately for Max, Maddie was not patient today as she purposely pressed the wipe hard against the Reaper's wound. Instantly, he hissed and threw an icy glare at Maddie.

"Would you PLEASE stop doing that?" Max shouted, still glaring at the living woman. Maddie glared right back at him.

"Then answer Danny's question!" She shot the words at the dead man. Max blinked a couple of times, his face scrunched in confusion.

"What question?" He asked stupidly. Danny really wanted to slap his dead uncle; but Jack beat him to it, slapping the Reaper upside the back of his head.

"The one that deals with you two being the Grim Reaper at the same time!" Jack shouted at the dead man. Max still looked confused, but then it struck to him.

"Ooooh..." He said once he remembered the question from only a little bit ago. He then frowned, annoyed at the Master of Time. "Okay...well...first of all, Danny's not really the Grim Reaper."

"What!?" Everyone shouted in unison, absolutely confused; but the Reaper continued.

"Instead, he's more like an apprentice than anything. Hence, why there are currently two Grim Reapers."

"What do you mean that Danny's your apprentice?" Jack asked harshly, wanting answers from the dead man. Max sighed while Maddie was patching up the last couple of wounds.

"It's really complicated to explain." Max began. "It would be better to say that Danny's not really the Grim Reaper."

"Okay, you just lost me." Tucker said.

"Yeah, me too." Danny sided with his best friend. "I thought all you had to do to become the Grim Reaper was to take ownership of the Grimm; at least, that's what I understood from Clockwork's explanation." Max stared blankly at his nephew's words.

"Did Clockwork tell you anything about the Soul Gem?" Max asked his nephew. Danny's face scrunched up in confusion.

"Soul Gem?" He wondered. "What the heck is a Soul Gem?"

"Clockwork...didn't...tell you?" Max said slowly, as if the words were foreign to his mouth. Danny shook his head as a response. Once Maddie had just finished applying the last band aid onto Max's wounds, he shot off of the counter in fury. The living instantly backed away as the Reaper fumed.

"Clockwork!" Max boomed into the ceiling of the lab, glaring at it as if the Master of Time was invisibility there. "You piece of soggy blueberry muffin mix! I'm soooo gonna break your entire tea set next time I see you! Oh, and I might as well burn those 1st edition books as well! You were supposed to do your job, Clockwork; by telling the boy everything that has to do with Grim Reapers! The job that you've been doing to every single nut-case Reaper since the BEGINNING OF TIME! YOUR JOB!"

"Um...Uncle Max?" Jazz said carefully as the angered man. Max spun his entire body towards her.

"What?" He shot harshly at the carrot-topped teen.

"Um...you shouldn't you be answering our questions instead of shouting at the ceiling as if you're mentally insane?" Jazz suggested lightly, fearing to upset the Reaper. To her surprise, Max bellowed a laugh.

"Ah, sweet Jazzy." Max said laughter still in his voice. "I_ am_ insane." He said, chortling for a bit more before he sighed. "Okay..." Pause. "You asked what the Soul Gem was, correct?" Max asked Danny to make sure he had heard correctly. Danny gave his uncle a nod. Max blew out a huff of air.

"The Soul Gem is a stone that holds the souls of the previous Grim Reapers." Max said glumly. Danny deadpanned.

"What?" Danny practically yelled. "What do you mean by 'the previous Grim Reapers'? Are you trying to tell me that Grim Reapers don't move onward?!" All Danny needed was his uncle's sad look as the answer to his question. "Why don't Grim Reapers move onward?" Danny asked, shaking in terror.

"I really don't know, Danny." Max said solemnly, as if he was regretting his choice to stay here. He sighed. "Anyways, you'll need to fulfill the two conditions to be officially become the Grim Reaper. One, you must possess both the Grimm and the Soul Gem. So, even though Danny has the Grimm, he doesn't have the Soul Gem-which I do have." Max said as he pulled out a little gem that was barely bigger than a glass lens. The gem, itself, was a smooth sphere. Max's eye color matched the gem-or rather-the gem matched Max's eye color. "Therefore, Danny's not really the Grim Reaper until he has both the Grimm and the Soul Gem." He made his point clear as he pocketed the gem.

"And the second condition?" Maddie prompted, not skipping a beat. Max hesitated.

"The second, is that you would have to be...dead." Max said, barely above a whisper. Everyone was silent as the words sunk into their skins. Danny literally shivered at his uncle's words.

"And what if Danny were happened to possess both the Grimm and the Soul Gem?" Valerie asked the Reaper.

"You mean right now?" Max asked to clarify.

"Yeah."

"Then he would die." Max answered as if Valerie had just asked him what's two plus two.

"What?" Sam nearly shouted. "What are you talking about?! If Danny possessed both the...scythe and the rock, then he'll die?! How the heck do that happen?!"

"Simple." Max said as he rocked on the heels of his feet, his pupil less eyes scanned the lab in boredom. "If he were to have both the Grimm and the Soul Gem in possession, then he'll die of a heart attack from their overwhelming dark energies."

Something about what Max that just said rang a bell in the Fentons' minds. It was Jazz who voiced it out first.

"Uncle Max..." Jazz began her voice so quiet that even the Reaper barely caught it. "Is that...is that...

"How you died?"

Max blinked. He blinked several times before answering Jazz.

"Uh..." He began, clearly uncomfortable with the fact that everyone in the room was staring at him with pity and sympathy in their eyes.

"Yeah...

"That's how-eh-er..." Max stuttered. His left hand began to rub his right arm's bandaged wound. "...Yeah..." Max said softly. "That's how I-er-died..." He finished, still rubbing his arm almost absent minding. Something about Max's movements unsettled Jack and Maddie. They know him well enough to know that his little rub actually means that he's really comfortable and that he feels guilty...

About telling his lie.

They were about to voice their question when Tucker asked Max another question.

"Um...excuse me?" He asked in a mouse-like voice. Max faced Tucker, his face showing mild concern over the boy's...fear. "But what exactly is the...Grimm?" Max didn't even bother to open his mouth, for it was Danny who answered his best friend's question.

"That." Danny said, pointing to the black and white scythe with a lime green strip that separated the two halfs on the blade. A huge lime green jewel sat in the middle of the blade, connecting it to the metal staff that still lay on the floor where Danny had dropped it. "That is the Grimm."

Every single pair of eyes, dead or alive, strayed over to the scythe that lay on the floor. Max's eyes widen slightly at seeing the Grimm. An overwhelming desire to have it in his procession once more smothered him, making him paralyzed.

"_**Master.**_.." Called the Grimm, knowing that Max wishes to have him once more. "_**Master...Max..**_.."

No one could hear the Grimm's plead except for Max. Not even Danny heard the Grimm's voice as he continued to call to his Master.

Danny sighed. He could feel his uncle's emotions swirling around behind him. Hesitating slightly, he turned to see his uncle's face.

His uncle's face was indifferent. His mouth a firm line that split across his face. Black eyebrows were relaxed. Muscles were loose as he gazed upon the scythe. However, it was his eyes that betrayed him; showing Danny his true feelings...

His desire. To have the Grimm once more in his procession. It reminded Danny of Vlad; how he would do anything-_**ANYTHING;**_to get what he wants. He would never consider others in his plans, his desires. Heck, he left the world when the Disasteriod was about to destroy it, leaving Danny to come up with a solution to save the world; with the help of his best friends and his sister. Danny saw that same desire burn through his uncle's eyes, scaring him. But unlike Vlad, Max did not share his elder brother's sneer or the cruelty on his face; the way that power would radiate from Vlad as his goal became increasingly closer...

All Max really wants is to be united with the Grimm once more...

"Why does this seem so familiar?" Jack asked in utter confusion. Everyone but the dead man turned towards the huge pumpkin man.

"Dad, what are you saying?" Jazz asked, perplexed at her Dad's statement. Danny didn't blame her; for he feels the same exact way. How does the Grimm seem familiar to my Dad? Danny thought to himself.

"Jack's right." Maddie said, agreeing with her husband. "It's seems so familiar...yet so foreign..." A chuckle issued from the Reaper.

"You don't remember..." He said, gaffing at the idea. Everyone, then, turned towards the Grim Reaper.

"Don't remember what?" Maddie asked the Reaper, who shook his head.

"Nothing." He replied. That got Jack and Maddie bursting mad.

"MAX!" Jack shouted at the dead man, frustration warming his cheeks. "What the ghastly goop are you talking about?! What is it that we don't remember!?" Max stared at the living with eyes so cold that they could freeze hell, an insane chuckle began to rose from his throat.

"_You don't remember anything'; so don't even bother trying.._." Max said in a voice that reminded the living of a mentally insane villain. Maddie was about to say something, but the mini TV in the lab suddenly blared on.

"Stay tuned for this Nation-wide emergency broadcast." The TV blared. Every single head in the lab snapped towards the TV-where the nation-wide anchor man was sitting with a background flashing 'Emergency Broadcast'. Jack and Maddie had fixed the TV so that it could automatically turn on every time a ghost event happens to air on TV. "Everyone is ordered to stay indoors until the threat of this evil ghost is gone."

Evil Ghost?! Everyone in the lab-dead or alive-bolted towards the TV. The news man had on a very serious face as he addresses the viewers. "The White House has issued out an Emergency Ghost Invasion Warning for the Midwest states of these United States of America. Here's more on this story with Amity Park's Tiffany Snow."

A blond haired, blue eyed woman appeared on the screen on a nearby highway with, no other than, the blond haired Lance Thunder. Both news reporters looked grim as they aired on TV.

"Hello, this is Tiffany Snow." Said the blond haired woman.

"And this is Lance Thunder." Said the blond haired man. He turned to face the highway. "As you can see, America. This is highway is backed up for miles due to an emergency evacuation that the government has issued for this area. A rampaging ghost has attacked several people that were left stranded as the ghost neared them."

"Once the ghost's attack was over, allowing paramedics and the authorities to take over. Sadly, the paramedics declared the victims...dead." Tiffany said, trailing off as a tear fell from her eyes.

Everyone was stunned into silence by this news report. Tiffany and Lance kept on talking but no one could hear them anymore.

Danny gulped, knowing that this 'evil ghost' isn't even a ghost...

It's a _demon_.

Danny turned towards his uncle, about to voice out a concern, when he faltered to a complete stop.

Where the overwhelming desire of the Grimm once was, was now replaced by utter disbelief and guilt in Max's icy blue eyes. His face was slack as he slowly registered what the news reporters had just announced. He knew that people were dying, he could feel it; but he couldn't figure out how they were dying because of his lack of power.

And now he does...

And all he could feel was ashamed and responsibility from these victims, the innocent lives that had ended too short.

And it was his entire fault...

Max didn't even realized that he was moving until Danny's voice caught him; as if he was in the cookie jar even he wasn't supposed to.

"Max!" He called out, making everyone's heads whip around. Max was up a couple of steps on the stairs. "Where are you going?!" Max paused on the step; and looked at his nephew, determination flashing dangerously from his dead eyes.

"I'm going to stop that thing." Max said with utmost calm. "From killing innocent people."

"And how exactly are you going to do that?" Danny said. Everyone turned to face Danny, who was staring at his dead uncle. "If you haven't realized, that demon stole our powers; to the point that I can only use my ghost ray and that you can't even heal yourself." Max's eyes became hard, but understanding shone. "We need a plan-"

"A plan?!" Max shouted, interrupting his nephew. "We don't have time for a plan! That demon is taking innocent lives Danny!" He shouted, his hand pointing up the stairs at the demon that was approaching Amity Park. "We need to stop it before it's too late!"

"I agree with you, Uncle Max! But if we just barge in there and get killed, then what would happen next?!" Danny shouted at his uncle. Danny has absolutely no idea if a Grim Reaper could actually be killed by a demon, but Danny sure did had a near-death experience with a demon only a month ago...

Max sighed, understanding his nephew's words as he descended the stairs once more. He marched towards his nephew and looked down at him.

"Okay." He said his seriousness sharp in his voice. "What's your plan, apprentice?"

* * *

**First of all...**

**PLEASE-OH-PLEASE REVIEW!**

**I cannot stress how important it is to review this chapter! That includes any questions that you have; for I'm gonna use them for the next chapter! (Thus the reason why I have a writer's block.) So PLEASE review for the sake of this story!**

**I apologize ahead of time for any spelling/grammar mistakes. Blame Microsoft Word.**

**Oh, and thanks for reviewing and reading this story!**


	20. Something Off

Danny flew over the countryside beside Valerie, who had Tucker with her on her hover board. They were on their way to the meeting point, where they would meet up with the Fentons, Sam, and the Reaper. Danny sighed, reflecting on how he and Tuck somehow convinced the nation that he and his team will take care of this 'evil ghost'.

Tuck called for a late press conference, which no one wanted to go until he announced that Danny Phantom would be attending. It was only then, did Tucker had the nation's attention as Danny strolled up to the platform, taking the spotlight. The only reason why Danny was able to be visible, ironically, was because of the demon's absorption of his powers. Mind you, Danny still could pack a punch, but not a very powerful one. He and Tuck (mostly him) convinced the authorities to stay away from the 'evil ghost' until Danny and his team disposes of it. Part of that agreement was that any human being within a ten mile radius was to be evacuated as a percaussion, which hardly any one disagreed.

As Danny flew, his neon green eyes lingered onto his left wrist; where the Grimm was disguised as a watch; and once again, had allowed him to be his normal ghostly self without any Grim Reaper alterations. He can still feel some kind of dark energy pulsing lightly from the Grimm and into his being, but it has weakened tremulously since the demon's attack. Danny then shook his head, remembering when he had offered the Grimm to the Reaper, which is his dead uncle Max. He immediately refused, saying something about waiting for the right moment. Max must be getting as crazy as his Fruitloop of a brother...or like Clockwork...

A clearing in the middle of a small forest loomed ahead as Danny and Valerie swooped towards it; Tucker clung tightly to Val as they approached ground. They spotted the Fenton Ghost Assault Vehicle, arching in a wide oval before attempting to land. Danny landed, immediately walking towards his sister and Sam the second he touched ground while Valerie allowed Tucker to get off before her hover board disappeared to God knows where. Danny quickly scanned his surroundings.

His parents were busy preparing ghost hunting weapons near the front of the RV while Sam and Jazz were going over the somewhat plan that they had come up with while him, Tucker, and Valerie were at the press conference at the back of the RV.

... They were missing someone...

One of Danny's raven black eyebrows arched upwards as he approached the two teen females.

"Where's Uncle Max?" Danny asked his big sister while Tucker and Valerie caught up to the group of teens. Jazz lazily points over her shoulder at the RV. Danny could barely hear the sounds of someone gagging from around the corner of the RV.

"Behind the RV, somewhere." Jazz stated. Danny doesn't need to guess what his uncle was doing...

"It sounds like he's puking." Tucker said. Valerie Gibb-smacked him.

"Duh!" Valerie replied haughtily. She then looked at Danny. "I thought Grim Reapers don't eat..." Again, Danny's eyebrow arched.

"And where did you hear this from?" He asked her. She shrugged.

"I'm just guessing." She replied.

"Well, your guess is correct." Said Max as he leaned against the RV. The Reaper's face looked very pale with a slight ting of green. Danny doesn't blame him, for his father's driving is absolutely horrid. It doesn't help the fact that there are only four seats in there; meaning Max probably had to fight for his afterlife as Jack drove. "Although, I can eat if I really wanted to...but I usually don't."

"What do you mean 'if you really wanted to'?" Danny asked the Reaper. "I thought that Grim Reapers are invisible and intangible to everything!"

"Don't get me wrong; you're correct too." Max said. "It's just I can choose whether or not to be seen or to be solid." Danny stared at his uncle.

"Can I do that?" Danny asked. The Reaper shook his head.

"Nope. You're just an apprentice. You'll actually have to be the Grim Reaper to be able to do that."

"And how does being dead make you solid?" Sam asked.

"Well...being dead is a part of it." Max said. "Mostly it's because of the Grimm. You see, the Grimm is like a stimulant to our powers. And believe it or not; when you die, well in Danny's case or mine, our powers increase dramatically. And in combination of the Grimm, we can bend the rules a bit and make it so that we're able to become visible or solid or something like that." Danny crossed his arms, frowning.

"Anything else you can do that I can't?" He asked his dead uncle, who chuckled at the sight of his irritated nephew.

"I know every single person's name on the planet." He began with a smirk. "I can change my appearance to whatever I deem fit; an example would be in London when you and Sam were in the creepy bookstore. Another one would be the bodyguard that saved Tucker's life from being crushed by that falling limestone." The teens blinked while Max stood there, pondering to make sure he had told the teens anything that makes him and his nephew different. "Oh, and I tend to make things die when I'm severely mad or upset." He added in as an afterthought.

"You tend to make things DIE!?" Echoed a very scared Mayor. That caused Max to chuckle, making Tucker cower behind Valerie.

"Yes, Mr. Mayor Foley. I _can_ or _will_ make things die." He said with an insane smile. Danny and Jazz raised an eyebrow at this.

"Uncle Max…are you insane?" Jazz asked. Was it just the teens, or did Max's smile became even more crazed?

"I prefer the term…'Mentally Unstable'." Max corrected his niece as he walked over to the lone tree that the Fentons used as a parking meter, leaning causally against the hard bark of the tall tree.

"In other words, yes." Valerie said after a brief moment of silence from the dead man's reply. "This reminds me of a question that I have for you." The Reaper finally stopped chuckling and gave her his attention. "Danny said that you guys are supposed to be invisible and intangible…so why can we see you now?"

"I believe Danny can answer that one for you." Max said still leaning against the tree, his eyes closed. Every teen's eyes landed on Danny, before he began.

"Um…..because the demon absorbed some of…our powers?" Danny suggested. Max smiled, his eyes still closed shut.

"You sound like you're questioning yourself." Max noted playfulness in his voice. "But, yes, you're correct. You see, that demon made us weaker by stealing our powers, and thus made us weak to the point that even the living can see us."

"Is it the same for demons too?" Danny echoed his question.

"Ah, no. For demons, it's the exact opposite. You see, all demons are invisible to the living. But. Only the strongest, the most powerful, demons can be seen by the living."

"And why is that?"

"I don't know." Max said, sighing softly at himself. "All I know is that there are very, very, _very_ few demons out there that can actually fool the living into thinking that they're alive."

"That's weird." Danny commented. "No wonder why people believe in Big Foot or stuff like that. And all this time, we thought that it was only ghosts that were the ones responsible for the sightings."

Max was about to object his nephew, but shook his head to himself.

Danny doesn't need to know about those _other_ demons. Max thought glumly to himself. Once this is over, Danny doesn't even need to be the Grim Reaper anymore.

"Max?" Said Valerie. Max shook his head, clearing it from his previous thoughts. He looked upon the African American female teen.

"Yes?" He asked her. She gulped, unsure about whether or not to ask him the question that burned her tongue.

"Uh…I have a question…"

"Well, shoot."

"You say that Danny's your apprentice...so that means that he's not really the Grim Reaper, is he?"

"Like I had said before, he's not really the Grim Reaper until he dies…or when he possesses both the Grimm and Soul Gem. Whichever comes first."

"So…he's still alive, right?" Valerie asked her question sent a shiver down Danny's spine.

"Yes." Max said, edging Valerie closer to her real intent.

"So…if Danny ever gets back to normal…doesn't he, like, _die_?" The second that those words left Valerie's mouth made Danny's otherworldly green eyes widen in absolute terror and fear. Sam felt his fear and squeezed his freezing hand gently into hers.

"And how exactly will he die?" Max questioned Valerie, who raised her eyebrows at the dead man as if he was crazy.

"Um…from the two months of no food or sleep!" Jazz answered for Valerie instead. She, then, glanced at Danny, looking a little uncertain. "… Uh…_ Did_ you eat or slept for the past two months?" She asked her little brother; who slowly shook his head 'no'.

"Oh…_that_." Max said, upon realizing the teens' concern he chuckled to himself. The teens stared at him, not finding anything funny about Danny dying from starvation and lack of sleep. "Don't worry, he won't die." He said after his little fit of laughter ended.

"… And you know this…how?" Sam asked, her warm hand firmly pressed into her boyfriend's ice-cold one. Max chuckled lightly.

"Let's just say, that I'm always right, okay?" Max said, completely ignoring the Sam's question.

"That still doesn't explain how come Danny's gonna die." Tucker said, making Danny wince.

"Danny's half ghost." Max said as if the answer solved everything.

"That still doesn't explain anything." Valerie said, a little ticked off from the Reaper. "For all we know, he's still gonna die." Danny frowned at Valerie, but she did have a point.

He may be half ghost, but that still doesn't prevent him from dying…

"And he's an apprentice!" Sam said, voicing out her opinion. "For all we know, the apprenticeship with the Grim Reaper could be speeding up his chances of death!" Danny bit back his retort.

"Sam, the whole apprenticeship doesn't make him any more dead than he already is." Max said causally. Danny felt extremely insulted from his uncle's comment.

"And how do you if it's true or not?" Danny asked harshly.

"Cuz I was once an apprentice too." Max said. "Except, I was sixteen and wasn't half-" He suddenly paused, his dead eyes wide.

Apple Sauce. Max cursed himself in his mind as five teens instantaneously shouted.

"What?!"

"You were an apprentice also?!"

"Shhhh!" Max tried to quieted the teens by franticly gesturing his hands to be quiet. He kept on looking towards the Fenton parents as if he was afraid of them finding out…

The thought strayed across Jazz's mind, the clogs quickly turned and before she knew it, she voiced out her question.

"Is that what Mom and Dad forgot? That you used to be the Grim Reaper's apprentice when you were alive?" Jazz spoke the question loud enough to silence the Freshmen. Max flinched, as if the question had stung him.

In other words: Jazz was right.

Jazz felt a smirk tugging on the corner of her mouth; but her Uncle's reaction slightly confused her. So, once again, she blurted out her next question.

"But why can't they remember?" She asked without thinking. She paused, and then she spoke once more. "No, more importantly, why _shouldn't_ they remember? Did something happen to you-to them-when you were an apprentice? Did-"

"Jazz." Max said, cutting her off. "Enough." He ordered his niece. The carrot-top quieted herself as Max closed his eyes and rubbed his temples.

So much for keeping his past a secret…

The Reaper sighed, opening his eyes wide enough to see the expressions of the teens' faces.

Great. They're interested. Max thought to himself, moaning aloud. He began to contemplate how to avoid digging deeper into his own grave. Ha-ha. Lame joke. Right, jokes aside… He could lie to them… But somehow, he knew it was futile. If there was one thing that Max remembered from being a teenager (which he can be every once-in-a-while) it was this:

Once you get your nose into something, it's hard (especially for a teen) to get it back out.

Max sighed once more.

"I guess I'll have to explain myself?" He asked the group of teens.

"Please and thank you." Jazz said. Max groaned.

"I'm really starting to regret letting you watch all of those educational videos…" He moaned out. Then he took a breath. "Well…jeez..."

He took a breath of air.

"I guess…I better start at the beginning…" He said, more to himself. Danny stared at his uncle, wondering why so much fear was on the dead man's face. "I-I was…sixteen…when I became an apprentice…in my Junior year of high school…

"My older brother, Vlad; along with your parents," Max said, gesturing with his head at Danny and Jazz. "my two best friends Peter and Chelsey-who are married to each other and have two adorable sons-" He trailed off once he realized that he went off topic. He quickly cleared his throat. "And…and… Of course…. Nat-" The Reaper choked on his voice upon saying his wife's name. For an instant, pain flared from the Reaper's pupil less eyes before he continued. "And Nat. They all knew who and what I really was… Of course, it took Peter a while to accept me, but….right…

"Well….uh…'things'…happened…" Max said using air quotes around 'things'. The teens frowned when he chose not to go into more detail. "And I ended up…um…dying-"

"You died!?" Tucker squealed out the second that the word 'dying' left the Reaper's mouth.

"But how can you die again when you _are _dead?!" Valerie shouted.

"Yeah! If you died when you were sixteen then how-" Jazz began to say, but the dead man interrupted her by his glare; once again making a 'shoosh' sound while glancing worryingly at Maddie and Jack, his hand gesturing the 'quiet' signal.

"Yes, I've _died_ before I really did die." Max said harshly, as if they had insulted him somehow.

"But how the heck could you die if you're already dead?" Sam asked her lavender eyes bright with interest.

"Let me rephrase that." Max began his hand once more on his temple. "I died when I was sixteen, but I was also _revived_ right after dying." At this, every single teens' mouth went slack open, causing the Reaper to giggle at their faces. "Oh, man." He chuckled out, still giggling. "Your faces… Ha-ha. Your faces!"

"But how the heck did you came back to life?!" Tucker shouted disbelievingly at the Reaper. Max (at this point, was doubled over, laughing) suddenly went rigid, his eyes wide. He slowly stood up to his full height.

"It was…." Max began his glaze somewhere between the two treads of the RV. A pained look shone through his dead eyes. "It was…is…very painful…to come back to life, that is." He sighed, closing his eyes momentarily before reopening them.

"I…I died a total of four times that year…" Max whispered softly as if he was speaking to a baby, but his voice carried easily to the teens' ears. "Each time…it was painful…and by the fourth time that I came back to life…my power….my power…was too much….for my…._living_ body…" At this, Tucker's head perked up, as if his Master had just whistled for him to come back.

"Wait-a-minute!" Tucker shouted, his body jerked towards the dead body. "Are you telling me that those stories are true; not a myth?! That if you come back from the dead, your power gets stronger? More powerful?"

"Yes!" The Reaper said, flinging his arms out wide. "It's true! Now can you _please_ shut up so that I could finish my story?!"

"Says the one that was laughing insanely just a few seconds ago…" Sam muttered, frowning at the dead man. He returned the favor by sticking out his tongue at her.

"I'm 'mentally unstable'. I have a clear and plain excuse for my behavior." The Reaper said.

"You weren't 'mentally unstable' when you were alive." Jazz retorted back at her uncle, who snorted.

"It's a Grim Reaper thing. Now, do you or do you not want me to finish my story?"

"By all means, go right ahead." Valerie said. The Reaper frowned at her tone of voice before continuing.

"Okay, so, before I was so rudely interrupted," Max said, casually gesturing towards Tucker, who also frowned. "I had died so many times that my powers were raving havoc on my living body. Not being able to control them, I had no choice but to ask for Clockwork and my Master-the Grim Reaper before me-Elizabeth-to help sort out my powers situtation...

"We made a deal." Max said with a pained hollowed voice. "I-I agreed...to stay out of the Grim Reaper stuff…and in return my powers will remain dormant until…until I become the Grim Reaper once more…

"But. In order to make the deal work…I…no…. Jack, Maddie, Chelsey, Peter, and-and…Nat….they-they…." At this point, the Reaper's face was so morphed with pain and suffering that it made the teens very uncomfortable. Max took a deep breath, shuddering.

"They agreed to forget who and what I really was…in order to help me live…." Max ended it, his voice crackling like lightning at the end. This time, the dead man was actually trembling, as if the memories were hurting him. "And so…that's why Jack and Maddie don't remember…nor my two best friends…and _Nat_…. They willingly gave up their memories of me being the Grim Reaper in order to keep my powers under control…"

The only thing that the group of beings at the rear of the RV could hear was the breeze rustling through the trees and the Fentons up at the front of the vehicle, bickering on whether or not they had left the cookies home. Each teen was a complete loss of what to say next…

Danny couldn't help but imagined himself into a similar situtation. What if everyone, especailly Sam, Tucker, and Jazz, had to forget that he was half-ghost? God, just thinking about it sounds painful… About hiding your true self from everyone else, always lying (then again, he's gotten so used to it)...

"Uh…Uncle Max?" Jazz began to say, snapping everyone's attention back into reality. "What's happening to your hand?" She asked her gaze on her uncle's right hand.

He, too, looked down; a smile splitting across his face as small blue sparks fizzled from his hand. He clenched it, his smile growing broader as the electricity intesitified in his clenched fist.

"Execellent." Max said grinning like the devil himself as the sky blue electricity arched into the air.

However, his face suddenly went slack, devoid of any of the previous excitement or pleasure from his display of his powers. His head snapped up, as if he had caught a scent... Or should we say:

He had _sensed_ something.

Danny frowned when he, too, sensed what his dead Uncle had sensed.

The demon…

Max's body slightly bristled as he turned away from the teens, his face hard as he glared off into the distance. Before any of the teens could question the Reaper's actions; the ground shook as trees rattled and crashed into each other, trunks being snapped in half like toothpicks.

"What's going on?!" Maddie yelled at the group of people at the rear of the RV as she and her husband ran towards them. The deathening thunder of trees smacking into one another as something marched towards the group.

"The demon…" Max began as the foremost trees fell to the ground as six shadowy arms came into view.

"Is here…"

* * *

**You probably all thought that I had stopped this; but I didn't! ^^**

**I'm just busy with school and stuff. Plus, I've kind of distracted myself because of The Accident.**

**Next chapter shall be more exciting!**

**Oh, and I apologize for anything that doesn't make sense/grammar/spelling mistakes.**


	21. The Final Battle

Danny was shocked when the demon appeared from the forest, his mouth wide open in disbelief at how huge the demon has become. Max felt the same way, but kept his face from showing any emotion as the demon entered the clearing.

The demon was as tall as the trees themselves! It had six long, spidery arms with claws at each end; and also, the demon had seemed to form a tail with spikes at the end. Power radiated from the demon, its mouthful of fangs sneered at the group of beings.

"**Ah… Reapers**." The demon said its voice loud. Its hungry red eyes strayed onto the group of full humans. "**I see you have brought me a snack**." The huge demon said. Danny bristled with renew anger at the demon's statement. But before he could even react; Jack aimed at the demon with the Fenton Bazooka.

"Eat ecto-plasma, Demon Scum!" Jack roared as he fired at the demon. The group watched as the green ray slammed into the demon's chest. Jack did a fist pump, happy that he had damaged the demon-

"**That tickles**." The demon said, watching the green ray pass him. Everyone's (except for Danny and Max) eyes were wide open in disbelief at the scene. Sure, the ecto-ray harms ghosts, hit humans; but to go through an entire being without being hurt? It was unheard of! Max scoffed and glanced at Jack.

"Told you so." Max said; recalling Jack and Maddie's stubbornness when he told them that their weapons would most likely not work against the demon.

"**Snack time!"** The demon called, licking his lips; its arms moved as it prepared itself to attack the group of humans. Danny's body went tense at the demon's gesture, a burning desire to protect his friends and family overwhelmed him…

Without even another thought, Danny brought his right hand over to his left wrist; where the Grimm has disguised itself as a watch, and made a sweeping motion away from it. Dark energy poured from the watch, enveloping him to form a robe around his figure. A wicked scythe materialized from his left hand, appearing along the path of motion as his right hand moved away, revealing a slate colored metal staff with a half black, and half white blade with a strip of neon green that split the two halfs.

Danny immediately sprung after the demon; hefting the scythe high above his head as he swung, ghastly green energy bursting from the blade as it split through the air. The energy slammed into the demon, making a faint scratch on the demon's skin.

It began to laugh as his skin instantly began to repair itself.

"**You cannot defeat me!"** The demon cried out with twisted happiness as Danny fruitlessly tempted to destroy the demon again and again while Jack, Maddie, Jazz, Sam, Tucker, and Valerie all tried to attack the demon with ghost weapons; but each shot just pass through the demon as if it never existed. The only being that was not doing anything to thrawf the demon's intentions was the Grim Reaper himself. Max just stood there, watching as everyone tried to harm the demon in any way, but all was fruitless; even Danny's attacks aren't powerful enough to physically harm the demon.

_Just wait a little longer…_ Max thought to himself as the living beings retreated from the demon, who had begun to stomp around like a giant from the _Jack and the Beanstalk_ folklore. _Then you can have the Grimm and your power back… _

Just then, Valerie was swiped out of the air by one of the demon's arms.

"No!" Danny cried as he flew as fast as he could at Valerie, but the demon knocked him away from her. Valerie tried to get her hover board back to work, but it refused to respond to her wishes.

"Ahhhh!" Valerie screamed in terror as she loamed closer to the ground. Just when she thought that she was done for; a pair of hands grabbed Valerie, guiding her to a bulk of a body instead of the hard ground.

"I got you." Max said to Valerie as he floated down the very few feet he had managed to fly up in time to catch Valerie. Once their feet touched solid ground, Valerie yanked herself away from the Reaper, glaring at him as if it was his fault that her hover board stopped working.

"I didn't know that you could fly…" Valerie said more to herself than the Reaper, who shrugged at her words.

"I fly only when it is absolutely necessary; other than that, I prefer to be grounded." He said this as his hands strayed to his jean pockets. He and Valerie watched as the demon and Danny fought against one another; everyone else abandoning the fight due to their fruitless effort, joining the Red Huntress and the Reaper a little far off from the battle.

"Are you worried?" Tucker asked. He meant the Reaper's expression. The Reaper slowly nodded his head, his eyes still trained on his nephew as Danny dodged an attack.

The Reaper was worried for his nephew's life. If Danny dies, then it will be his entire fault. Max is very different from his brother, Vlad. Vlad would use other people as pawns to get what he wants or to fix a problem; not caring if they ended up dead. Max, on the other hand, is the exact opposite. If it was Max's problem, it was Max's problem and no one else's. Of course, this doesn't apply when Max begs his older brother for money…

Either way, Max knew, _just knew_ that Danny having a part of this-his's-world was a very bad idea. The only reason-_the only reason_-why the Reaper had allowed it was because of Clockwork's say so; even though all the Master of Time does is annoy him, he still seeks out the wise ghost's advice. But even with his conflicting views on the issue, Max still trusts Clockwork for greater good for all.

"Daaah!" Danny yelped as the demon sliced open his arm, absorbing some of his powers in the process. Green ectoplasm dripped from his wound as Danny flew away in retreat from the demon, preventing the demon from absorbing even more of his powers.

**_"_****What's wrong, boy?"** The demon cried out, a little stronger than a second ago. **_"_****Do you fear me? Do you fear Death?"** Danny hissed in frustration.

"I'm not afraid you or Death!" Danny proclaimed with confidence. "I mean, _come on!_ Death's my goody-shoe Uncle! I'm not afraid of him!" Danny added in as afterthought, causing Max to face palm himself. The apprentice repositioned the scythe in a more comfortable position and crouched. "Besides, I'm gonna defeat you!" He yelled as he flew at the demon with the Grimm poised to attack.

"**Fool.**" The demon grunted out as Danny attacked. The demon rose a lazily arm to block the weak attack; and immediately stroke out at Danny. Danny dodged, but just barely. Unfortunately, Danny had unknowingly placed himself into a trap as all six arms began to collapse onto Danny.

Danny didn't even had the time to react as the arms contracted, the space between Danny and each arm decreasing quickly. It was like being trapped inside a hole whose walls moved closer and closer together until you are…well…you know…

"_Danny!_" Max called out, his voice radiating with some his usual power. "_Come here!_"

"**Ha!"** The demon cheered as his arms slammed into one another. "**You're de-**"

"Whoa!" Danny said, shocked as he suddenly appeared in front of the group. The demon's face was wide in disbelief as well as everyone else's. "How'd you do that?" He asked his Uncle, who shrugged at his nephew.

"I just do." He answered simply, not even bothering to giving into any details-_just like Clockwork. _The demon roared angrily at his near-catch. Danny flinched from the demon's growl, hefting the Grimm in a defensive position.

"Uncle…" Danny said, still facing the demon. "I don't think I can hold against this demon much longer…" Max nodded. He knows. And yet…

"Just a little longer, Danny." Max said, staring at the demon and at his nephew. "Then we'll switch places." Danny nodded to show that he understood his Uncle's (somewhat) suicidal plan as he launched himself at the demon.

The demon chuckled as Danny attacked, the lime green wave of energy bursting from the black and white scythe flew out like a wing would to take flight at the demon. It stuck, but again, it didn't do any damage to the demon as it reared itself to attack. It swiped at Danny, who dodged expertly from the attack, managing to cut the demon with the Grimm.

"**Useless!**" The demon cried out joyfully as his wound began to heal. Danny frowned as he made for another attack; but this time, the demon smacked Danny away, slicing his skin open.

"Daaah!" Danny cried out as he landed painfully on the grassy ground, cuts run down his chest from the demon's latest assault. His hand found its way under his dark robe, putting pressure on his wound.

"Danny!" Cried out the living humans as they ran over to the injured Reaper's apprentice. Danny turned around, his eyes wide in fear and in pain as they neared him.

"Don't!" Danny cried out, wincing slightly. "Don't come any closer!"

"And why the heck not?!" Sam shouted as she neared her boyfriend.

"**And the prey sets itself into a trap**." The demon said menacing as it towered over the group of humans. Its grin stretched from one corner to another, licking its lips as four of its arms snapped at the group of humans. Danny felt a lump in his throat when he realized that he won't be able to do anything to save his friends or family.

So much for being a super hero and all that…

The demon's hands were only ten feet away from grabbing Jazz when a figure suddenly appeared, blue electricity danced in his hands as he punched through the air. Lightning flew out of the Reaper's hands, making a cracking sound like a broken mirror would make. The electric blue lightning struck the demon dead in its chest, forcing it away from the living beings (and one half alive).

The lightning died down, fizzling itself out of existence as Reaper faced his apprentice, his face serious.

"I believe it's time for us to switch places?" Max said, his hand held out. It didn't take Danny long to figure out that his uncle wants the Grimm back in his position. Danny, worn out, smiled a tiny bit as he placed the scythe into the Reaper's hand.

Immediately, Danny felt a _shift_ of power as it left his system. Weariness and tiredness slammed into Danny like a pile of bricks. Hunger pains stabbed his stomach, making it twist and turn painfully. He gritted his teeth, muffling his cries. He was in so much pain, but yet, something distracted him; some powerful dark energy was radiating from somewhere very close to him. His senses went into overdrive as they pinpointed where the energy was pulsing from…

It was his Uncle.

His Uncle was no longer in just a plain tee with jeans. Instead, a tattered robe made out of shadows covered his form; no highlights whatsoever could be seen, as if the robe was just a solid black 2D object. The Grimm had changed its shape once it was handed over to Max. The once black and white metaled scythe has now transformed itself into a more standard-like one. The blade was stainless steel, with a couple of wicked curves on the blade to make it seem more deadly. The staff instead has turned into wood, worn down at some places while other places were smooth. A tattered blue ribbon was tied tightly at the bottom of the staff, fluttering slightly as if there was wind…

While Danny felt completely exhausted and weak, the Reaper felt relieved and so much stronger than before.

"**_Master…_**" The Grimm whispered the Reaper, who smiled in content for the first time in two months. Feeling so much zeal for the first time in so many years, the Reaper crouched, a huge ass grin spread across his face.

"Let's do this." Maximilian said with confidence as he disappeared in a whirl of shadows.

The demon blinked, confused as to where the Grim Reaper had went.

"**Where did he-**" The demon began to say, only to scream out in absolute pain as bright blue electricity sliced its arm completely off of the demon. It clutched where one of its arms used to be. It glared out of the corner of its eye at the Reaper who stood in midair behind him, grinning slightly.

"I'm right here." Max answered his unfinished question, smirking a bit. He floated above about ten feet off the ground, leaning on the Grimm as if it was a harmless railing. Danny blinked.

How come he can slice off that demon's arm while I could barely managed scratching it? Danny thought to himself.

_I…I died a total of four times that year… _Echoed his uncle's voice from only a few minutes ago_. Each time…it was painful…and by the fourth time that I came back to life…my power….my power…was too much….for my….living body…_

So that's why… Danny thought to himself as the demon reared itself. The only reason Max could easily slice off that demon's limbs is because of him dying and coming back to life… Man that just gotta suck…

"**You think you're all that?!**" The demon asked, whipping its other arms around to assault the dead man; snapping Danny away from his thoughts. "**Allow me to show you the ****_true_**** meaning of death!"**

"I'll like to see you try." Max said darkly as he swung the scythe, blue electricity flashed off the blade, forming an energy wave of power as it sliced off the rest of the demon's arms. The teens cheered when the demon's arms disappeared in a shower of blue pieces. Once again, the demon howled in pain from losing all of its limbs as the Reaper went ahead to deliver the final blow.

Max knows that he doesn't have enough power to destroy the demon, but he might as well try his best as he concentrated on his powers. He poured almost all of his power into the Grimm, making the blade turn into sky blue as sparks danced from it. He flew at the demon; pieces of his robe tore apart and drifted into the air before disappearing for good. The Reaper swung the Grimm diagonal across the demon's body. A flash of blue lightning blinded everyone as thunder boomed over.

Max skidded across the air, blue sparks formed from the friction caused by stopping in midair. He turned around, watching the demon as it looked about itself when a pleasant expression painted itself on its face.

"**What was that, Reaper?**" The demon asked, apparently not hurt by the Reaper's most recent attack. "**Are you really that wea-**"

It didn't finish his sentence when a plane of sky blue energy bursts from the demon's chest; exactly where Max had cut the demon. The demon's eyes went wide in disbelief as pain reared into its nerves. It howled as the power tried to destroy him from the inside out.

The humans cheered for the dead man, except for Danny. He felt that something was…off. That his uncle didn't succeed his attack on destroying the demon. Meanwhile, Max held his breath; unsure whether or not that that last attack had enough power to destroy the demon.

It didn't…

Every human being (dead or alive) stared in horror as the demon's limbs regenerated themselves as well as his chest wound healing almost instantly. In only three breaths' time, the demon was completely healed, grinning broadly at the floating man.

"Cream Puffs." Max muttered as one of the demon's six arms shot out at the Reaper. Max dodged the arm, and another, and another…and another; making his way to the demon's face. As he neared his destination, he hefted the Grimm, only for the demon to grab the bladed end. Max was shocked that the demon would do such a thing. The Reaper wrenched the Grimm out of the demon's grasps, only for the demon to grab onto the staff part; dangerously close to the torn ribbon.

Max tried to tug the Grimm away from the demon; but the demon's grip was like iron, not budging one bit. The Reaper gritted his teeth, fear overwhelming him until he realized that the end of the Grimm's staff was pointing towards the demon's face; a smirk appeared on the Grim Reaper's face.

The little trick will work…

"Hey! You!" Max cried out joyfully at the demon. Immediately, the demon's attention snapped onto the Reaper himself. "Do you wanna know what happens when someone gets the short end of the stick?"

"**Uh…**" The demon said dumbly as the blue ribbon suddenly began to move up the staff as if it had just changed into a snake. "**They…die?**" The demon finished as the ribbon tied itself around Max's, leaving a hole at the end of the staff.

"Oooo! So close, yet so far away." Max said as the end of the staff began to glow light blue. As it powered up, the light turned from blue to white, beginning to blind the demon. "They go…

"Ka-boom." The Reaper said as pure white lightning flashed from the staff, stabbing right through the demon as lightning flared out on the other side. It screamed for only a second, backing away from the Reaper; but its wounds was already healing. Max held back from swearing aloud as the demon laughed at the Reaper's position.

"**I wonder…**" The demon began a smile on its face. "**What were you gonna do after you've…ah, ****_destroyed _****me?**" The demon chuckled at the end as its hands flew at the Reaper, who sliced off each one. But, of course, the demon's hands regenerated instantly.

This…is…getting….nowhere. Max thought dully to himself as he dodged the demon's attacks. Once in a while, he would take the offensive and attack; but the demon's healing powers where too fast for the Reaper as an arm smacks the Reaper into a couple of trees.

"Uncle!" Jazz cried out. She began to run over, but was stopped by her younger brother.

"Jazz." Danny said his sister's name as he held her shoulder. She glared at him.

"Danny, let go." She said, still glaring. "I have to help Uncle-"

"How?" He asked his older sister. "Tell me. How the heck are you gonna help him if you can't even harm the demon!" Jazz felt torn as the truth from her younger brother's words stung her. She glanced at their uncle, who was now standing up a little clumsily from his crash landing, and looked back at her brother. She sighed, knowing that he has won.

"Fine." Jazz said, shrugging off his hand. "But tell me Danny. What are _you _gonna do?"

Danny just stared at his sister as a response.

He doesn't know what to do… He has no ideas whatsoever. He's just too new to this new lifestyle of his uncle's. He turned to watch his uncle, a very bad feeling settling in his stomach.

Max was still fighting against the demon, just dodging most of the time; keeping the rest of his power in case something absolutely nightmarish happens.

I have to stop him. Max thought to himself as he dodged another swipe from the demon. But how? I'm still too weak. … Buttermilk! What can I do?

"**_Use it, Master_**." The Grimm told Max through his mind. "**_Use it, and then no one will die…_**" Max hissed at the scythe.

_Shut it._ He told the Grimm. _I don't __**need**__ your power._

Max gritted his teeth as he dodged again, completely ignoring the Grimm's suggestions. He needs to come up with a way to stop this demon before it kills anymore innocent people or worse…me.

The Reaper flinched at the last words of that statement.

NO. He thought to himself, shaking his head slightly as he swiped at the demon. I'm not gonna die; and either is anyone else. I have to stop this demon! If I don't, then everyone's gonna die! Even Danny!

Danny…

_Danny being your apprentice isn't just for his own survival, but yours also. _Clockwork's voice rang out in the Reaper's mind. _If you absolutely refuse, then you'll be robbing your nephew's right to live. Besides, you'll find it to be most beneficial when you're both in a very, __**very**__ tight situation._

The Reaper gulped, realizing that they _are_ in a very tight situation. But how in Creampuffs can Danny help the Reaper? Danny's _weaker _than the dead man. Even the Reaper is weaker than usual because of the demon. … If only he was stronger… If only someone else can help-

An idea popped into the Reaper's mind. He clung to that idea for dear life (well, afterlife that is) as he reviewed the outcome in his mind. There are only two possible outcomes if he chooses to follow his idea. One, they live; two, they don't.

The Reaper was too busy thinking that he didn't even get to see the demon's hands began to form a closed container, trapping the Reaper inside.

"**Ha, ha, ha!**!" The demon laughed as he suffocated the dead man. Except, there was nothing but dry air. The demon was confused as to why the Reaper was no longer in his grasps. "**You've got to be kiddi**-"

And for the second time in a row, Max had sliced off one of the demon's hands. The demon growled, about to attack the Reaper when he shocked himself stiff.

The Grim Reaper appeared right in front of the demon's face, his right hand clench as lightning formed around his hand. As quickly as possible, the Reaper threw his power enhanced punch at the demon; making the demon fumbled backwards about a football field from the hit. It crashed into the trees, a little daze from the swiftness of the attack.

Max didn't hesitate one second as he took this opportunity to teleport from where he was floating and appeared in front of the living humans. They could tell that the Reaper was tired and worn out from the battle by the look of his face.

"Maxy…" Jack began, but Max past by Jack and approached Danny; stopping a few feet away from his nephew. Danny was confused at his dead uncle's actions.

"I need your help." Max said; as if to answer Danny's confusion. This time, even more confusion showed on Danny's face.

"Uh… _You_ need _my _help?" Danny asked his uncle, confused as to why his uncle needed his help.

"Yes." His uncle replied. "I need your help; because, as you can see, I'm not powerful enough to destroy this demon alone."

"Did you not watch Danny when he was battling that demon? He's too weak to even use his ice powers! And you expect him to battle this demon all by himself?!" Maddie spat out at the Reaper, angry that he would carelessly shove Danny to his death. Max stiffened at Maddie's words.

"I'm not suggesting that he'll be battling the demon _alone_." The Reaper said a little ticked at Maddie's assumption. "I was thinking that we could battle against the demon _together_."

"But how?" Danny asked his uncle. "My powers won't work unless I'm holding the Grimm." Max sighed.

"Then I guess we'll just have to hold it together." Max suggested as a solution, he glanced at the now recovering demon. He bit his lip as the demon rose onto its feet. "Maybe…we could only do one attack…"

"Excuse me?"

"I mean, we just put everything we have left into one shot-one kill thing. All of our power into one concentrated shot. And hopefully that'll destroy the demon once and for all…"

"You don't really sound all that confident." Sam noted from the Reaper's tone. Max chuckled at the protective girlfriend.

"I'm not; but it's better to at least try than not to." He told the Goth girl. He, then, faced his nephew. "So…Danny. What's your choice? Try this idea, even though we might fail at the end? Or don't try and fail anyways?"

Well if he puts it that way…

"Okay, let's see if your idea works." Danny said as calmly as he could. Max smiled at his nephew.

"**REAPERS!**" The demon roared once it was steady on its two legs. (For a very powerful demon, it's pretty dumb for announcing everyone its presence instead of just outright attacking from behind without a single noise.) Danny and Max faced the demon as the living reluctantly retreated further away from the potential battlegrounds. Danny flashed them all a small smile before he stared at the demon, who was approaching the two Reapers.

I sure hope this idea works… Danny thought to himself as he grabbed the staff, towards the end with the blue ribbon. Dark energy poured into Danny's system, but not as much as usual; even the Grimm has been affected by the demon's ability to absorb power.

It was at that point, did it strike Danny how familiar the ribbon was…

It was his Aunt Natalie's. And she wore it every single day until the day Max was buried. There, she pulled the ribbon out of her hair and wrapped the fabric around her dead husband's hand before sealing his coffin from the outside world forever. For Max to have that very same ribbon on his scythe can only mean one thing:

That he hasn't forgotten about her…or Kathy.

And that he still loves them.

"Ready?" Max asked his nephew. Danny gulped, his eyes trained on the demon in front of them.

"Ready." Danny squeaked out. He, then, closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

This is gonna work. He told himself as he forced all of his remaining power into the Grimm. This is gonna work.

…

No.

This _will_ work.

Danny opened his eyes; but instead of the usual sky blue eyes, his eyes were a solid lime green color, showing no other color. Max's eyes were the same deal, but the color was still sky blue as sparks fizzled from random points of the Reaper's body. A green wavy-like power silhouette Danny's form as the Grimm began to show the two powers powering the weapon as green and blue energies danced along its surface. The demon laughed at the site, charging at them.

"**You will all die!**" The demon roared as its six hands shot out in front of it.

I beg to differ. Danny thought as his uncle shouted 'NOW!'.

As if their minds were corrected, they moved as one; raising the Grimm high before bringing it down in a flash of cool light. The chaotic mass of the two energies swirled about in a wave as it hurled at the demon, slashing right through his hands like butter. The demon's face widens in fear and shock as the wave continued its path towards its main body.

The demon wanted to do anything in its power to stop this threat; to flee for its life.

But it was just too late.

The wave of blue-green energies slammed into the demon's main body and appeared on the other side. The demon howled in absolute overwhelming pain as his body began to dissolve into tiny pieces. Its howls pierced the air; making the living cover their ears as a way to dim the sound, while as Max caught the exhausted Danny before he collapsed onto the ground. Danny moaned from contact, making his uncle chuckled at his discomfort.

"Did…we did…it?" Danny wheezed out. A smile crept onto the Reaper's lips.

"Yes, nephew." Said the dead man as he looked fondly at his young nephew. "Yes we did." Danny breathed out a sigh of relief as his eyes opened, once again sky blue.

"What's that?" Tucker's voice rang out in the somewhat silent clearing. Both Reapers looked up.

The demon was still being destroyed, revealing something that the demon once had…

Their powers.

Danny, suddenly finding enough strength to move, stood up to his full height and left his uncle. He approached the disappearing demon as a lime green power began to react…

As if it knew that Danny was right there.

Danny took another step towards the massive blob of green energy when it suddenly sprung upon him. His ghost powers injected themselves into the young teen, fusing itself with Danny once more. His powers were still settling themselves when a flash of bluish-white appeared at the teen's torso, transforming him from alive to dead.

"Yes!" The teen shouted pushing himself off the ground, still glowing a tiny bit green as his powers finally began to settle into the teen. Once his white aura surrounded his body, did Danny test out his powers; which he was absolutely both relieved and thrilled to have all of his powers back to working order.

Max smiled at his nephew before he faced towards the dissolving demon. Something crackled from inside the rapidly dissolving demon. The Grim Reaper bit his lip as a flash of light blue highlighted the demon's destruction. By now, Danny has finally touched ground after a very nice flight in the cool air. He noticed that everyone was still watching the Reaper, and so he joined them.

Max's power did not show any interest to return to its rightful as the last pieces of the demon disappeared from existence. The second that the last of the demon was vanished forever, did his power shot out, slamming itself into the Reaper's body. Max gasped for air.

In that instant, the greenery went from alive to dead; shocking the living into absolute fear for their lives. The trees were bare, their trunks rotting, bark flaking off. The ground beneath their feet was dry and cracked; and what little grass was left looked like it would fall apart just by you looking at it. Even the air had a stench of tastelessness; of _death_, as some would call it. However, when the Reaper exhaled, life returned to the area, replacing that image with colors and hope. Blue sparks danced around the Reaper's body until he made a sweeping movement with his entire arm.

"**_Ah… Much better._**" Max said in a voice that sounded exactly like a demon's. Even though Danny's friends and family haven't really known or seen demons until now, they tensed at the Reaper's voice; fear lit up their faces. Danny gulped, suddenly finding himself scared. The Reaper turned to face the group of living humans and began to chuckle.

"What's wrong?" Max asked his voice back to being the usual playful and calm tone. "Reaper got your tongue?" And at that, he began to chuckle as the discomfort able living beings.

"And how is that funny?" Valerie asked, but the Reaper only chuckled more in response. However, his chuckles abruptly stopped dead in its tracks. His pupil less eyes widen in shock.

"You've got to be kidding me!" The Reaper suddenly shouted, scaring the wits out of the living. "How many times; HOW MANY FLIPPIN' TIMES, has she been warned about texting while driving?! All of those news stories about people _dying_ while texting and driving; AND WHAT DOES SHE DO?! WHAT DOES SHE FLIPPIN' DO?!" It was at that point did the Reaper realize that the living was staring at him as if he was an insane lunatic….which he was. Immediately, he straightened himself up and cleared his throat.

"I'm sorry that you had to witness that." He said coolly. "But I'll have to go." He said turning away from the living.

"So…" Sam's voice rang out, causing the Reaper to pause. "Does this mean that Danny…?" Everyone watched the Reaper as he watched them back.

"Danny is still my apprentice." The dead man said. "But he can go back to his normal everyday life until I need him." It seemed like everyone, including the Reaper himself, breathed a sigh of relief. "Now, I must really get going; I'm three hours behind my work." He turned to leave once more, but once again, a voice stopped him; however, it was Tucker this time.

"Hey. I thought people can't see or hear Grim Reapers." Tucker asked the dead man. "So how come we can still see you?" It was then that the Reaper laughed at the young Mayor.

"That's simple." The Reaper said with a playful smile. "The only reason why you guys can see me is because I'm _allowing_ you to see me."

And with that, the Reaper disappeared from the early gray light; leaving the living alone to rejoice that Danny has finally came home.

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**Last Chapter of 'Grim Reaper Chronicles: Danny Phantom'. But of course there needs to be an epilogue. XD**


	22. An Epilogue to the Beginning

**Please read author comments after reading this Epilogue.**

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"Danny." Said a young lady's voice. Her voice, although soft, pierced the delicate hearing of a young male's ears. "Come on, Danny. You need to stay awake." She said, messing with his raven-black hair. He groaned as a response.

"Five more minutes." He muttered as he buried his head into his girlfriend's lap. She sighed, watching him tenderly as he somewhat slept in her lap.

"Come on, Danny. Once this is over with you can sleep however long you want." She told him, a smile cracking at the corners of her mouth.

If he had it his way, he'll probably never wake up. She thought dully to herself as she shook her boyfriend.

"Sam..." He groaned, shifting his body closer to her. Sam felt shearing heat flash through her face as her boyfriend cuddled cozily into her lap. She let her arms lay onto top of the young man, enveloping him like a butterfly, watching him as he peacefully dozed as a pleasant feeling of content settled into her heart.

"Miss Manson." A suddenly brisk voice snapped Sam back into reality. Her sudden awareness made the young man startle awake. "Mr. Fenton, its time. The press is waiting for you."

Groaning even more, the raven-haired teen slowly rose from his slumber. He flashed his girlfriend a lop-sided smile as he gave her a quick peck on her cheek. She sat there, blushing even more which made him chuckle as he stood up from his resting position. The teen glanced at his girlfriend one last time before following the bodyguard towards the main lobby.

Danny could easily hear the crowd that waited for him outside among the steps leading towards City Hall, nervousness choking the air out of his lungs. Tucker had already emailed/blackmailed the press into only asking the 'appropriate' questions. Yeah, call it political power, but no one-NO ONE-can know the truth about Danny's two month disappearance. Or else...or else...

Well...then things would get very messy.

Danny and the bodyguard stood beside the main doors, watching Tucker's backside as he spoke to the crowd as he was being broadcasted world-wide.

The young hero sighed, trying his best to calm his nerves. It reminded of him when he had first let out his secret a little over three months ago; how he had to further prove himself that he wasn't like Vlad in any way whatsoever. God that was hell. The Guys In White caused a huge ruckus about it; claiming that Danny was just fooling everyone into believing that he was the hero when he actually wanted to enslave mankind just like Vlad. It took all of Danny's willpower to not let his anger blind him; tempting him to beat the Guys in White into a pulp. Of course, that all settled down once-

"And without further ado, let me announce the arrival of the world's one-and-only half-human, half-ghost hero, _Danny Phantom_!" Tucker cried out, immediately grabbing even more of everybody's attention as his head turned around to look at Danny. A grin was smeared onto the Mayor's face as he jerked his head for Danny to come out. Danny nodded and took a deep breath as he stepped out from his hiding place.

The second his face appeared to the audience, everyone cheered loudly and uncontrollably as Danny passed Tucker to get to the podium. It took everyone several minutes before the excitement died down, allowing Danny to speak.

Danny totally ignored the whole big question of 'Where have you been for the past two months?' instead focusing on resting and going back to ghost busting once he's healed enough. Of course the crowd went berserk (or at least the citizens did; the news reporters didn't). However, when someone asked the question aloud, everyone exploded, pressuring and pestering Danny to answer the question. Danny gulped, staring at the crowd as bodyguards try to quiet the crowd. Danny still hasn't come up with a good excuse over his disappearance… Either he lies to everyone or he tells them the truth….

Something caught Danny's eye…

There, on his pedestal of his ghostly ego holding up the world, was a very familiar looking man, casually leaning against the statue as if he does this every day.

It was the Grim Reaper himself, Uncle Max.

Max leaned against the enormous carved rock, watching his nephew with a small smile. He wasn't in his robe, but instead in jeans, a white tee, brown boots, and a black leather jacket. He gave Danny a hesitate wink; the same wink that he would give to him back when he was alive.

And Danny found his answer.

"You wonder where I've been for the past two months." Danny asked the crowd casually. They blinked, hearing the halfa's words. Tucker was freaking out in backstage, along with Sam.

"Simple. Let's just say-" Danny began to say as he uncle left his spot against the statue, turning his back to Danny and began to walk away from the crowd of living humans. "-that I was spending some quality time with a certain relative of mine." He finished as a tattered black rode formed on the dead man's shoulders, a hollow playful smile on his lifeless lips.

End

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**Uh...yeah, sorry for lack of excitement for final part of this series.**

**Have a question though. Let's just say that there's...hm...maybe a...Season Two? to this. Should I just keep on updating this or start a new one? Just asking! But of course if there IS a Season Two, then I'll put S2 in front of the chapters; plus I'll have to rewrite the summary if this actually happens. Again, just askin'!**


	23. Season Two is Now up for Reading

**Season Two of Grim Reaper Chronicles: Danny Phantom is now up! ^^**

**Just as a warning, there will be more Max in this season. Plus, there's gonna be two huge foreshadowing events (both happen in the very first chapter! [but the first one was from the first season...so yeah...]).**

**And there's gonna be a butt load of new characters and some bonding time (literally)!**

**Well, how you'll all enjoy the Second Season!**

**Don't forget to review! **


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